


Street Fight

by HapSky



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Angst, Dark!Matt, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fluff, Galra Species, Galra!Keith, Keith has a twin, Multi, On Hiatus, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, PTSD Matt, PTSD Shiro, Pack Dynamics, Team as Family, dark!shiro, happy end, not every galra likes zarkon, post ep.11, pre ep. 12
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2017-02-27
Packaged: 2018-09-09 14:11:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8893696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HapSky/pseuds/HapSky
Summary: “Listen Kihe”, Matt calls out to him, “I have my little sister and my mother back on earth and my father still being imprisoned somewhere. And also-”, he gulps, “Also my friend who saved my life”His eyes are full of unshed tears and full of burning flames all the same.“I have to get out, I have to survive, I...”Matt's body trembles at the loss of words, he rips his gaze away from Kihe.And Kihe reaches out to him, gives him one firm hug, and tells him “Understood”He is gone without a look back.CURRENTLY REWRITING THIS





	1. In The End

**Author's Note:**

> I'm fascinated by the Galra. They're so damn interesting.  
> I just HAD to write something with Galra POV...
> 
> I'll add tags and warnings when they show up

Head down, ears twitching nervously. Kihe feels the stares on his slim figure as he crosses paths with another Galra warrior. He's not accepted, or rather not wanted amongst the others. He knows and he doesn't care, but it still feels uncomfortable being eyed from head to toe.  
He sighs and lifts his head, nods for a short greeting. The other immediately copies the movement. He may be watched with suspicious and judging eyes, but he still wears the dark, sinister glowing robe of the Druids, and none dared to anger a Druid, for who knows what they're capable of.  
His duty is to take care of the prisoners. They don't trust him enough to let him participate in research or in experiments.

So here he is, checking a young Rointa. They shiver with fear, breathing unsteadily. He couldn't blame them. He's a Galra, after all. They seem to get enough food and water, no signs of an illness or an infection either. Their skin feels dry and oh so cold. Looking in their eyes he sees nothing. No anger, no wrath, no fear, although the panic jolts the little fragile body without mercy. Only acceptance of their brutal fate lies within the iris-less orbs. He scribbles down in his digital notebook, and calls for the next prisoner. One after one, cell after cell, he checks upon them all, takes notes, leaves as quick as possible. Him lingering longer than needed wouldn't do them any good for sure.

Back at his desk he sorts through his notes. The Druids want some usable examples. Some for torturing, some for dissection, some to experiment on, some for fighting in the Colosseum. The rest goes to work camps. He's the one to choose which prisoner goes in which direction. He hates it. And they know he hates it. That's why he has to do it, so they could keep him in check, so they could break him. They did broke him indeed, this is a task too cruel for him to bear. He fought against his orders, he did rebel, but sooner or later, he gave up, he broke. Now he complies and fulfils his task obediently. Dissection for the young Rointa, he decides, their body was in a good shape, and they wouldn't have a long death fight, they would be put under narcosis, and never wake up.

The door hisses open, but he wouldn't look up until he feels a strong, warm hand on his shoulder.  
“You look tired”, the other says in a low but melodic voice, “Go get some rest”  
He blinks a few times, “I know... I just...”  
“At least try”, he gets interrupted, his shoulder gets squeezed and his heart gets a little heavier.  
His father looks as tired as he does, he's sure about that, and still he smiles gently.

He observes the other Galra bustling around in their shared room, mumbling a few incoherent words. Such a tall and strong creature, muscles dancing smoothly underneath the purple furry skin. The purple furry skin, scattered with scars. His father once rebelled too, and got beaten up, got tortured, got broken.

“How”, Kihe whispers, a sad admiration in his yellow eyes, “How do you keep going like that”  
His father stops rummaging through his mess of a desk and looks over to his son, his expression as full of sorrow as his son's quiet voice, “How can you sleep”, it sounds more like an statement than a question.

Kihe doesn't sleep. Not much, and when he does, not good, haunted by nightmares resembling his reality so perfectly, he can't tell the difference. Because there is none. That's why he hates sleeping, while sleeping, one can't tune out their emotions.  
His father cups his face, smiles softly, places a kiss on his forehead. Pats his head and ears, strokes his hair and fur, Kihe doesn't notice the needle pinched in his arm.  
  


 

 

When he wakes up his father is gone. Kihe lies on his bed, though he can't remember getting there. So, he guessed, his father once again used a tranquillizer on him. He goes back to work and finds a note telling him to inspect the new prisoners. Back in his robe, back in one of the cold, dark cells, back to taking notes. Everything as always. Some prisoners are unconscious, others yell at him, some try to escape. But they all end up being examined and written down in his book.

“Next”, he sighs and another alien gets shoved in front of him.  
He recognises the body structure instantly. Similar to the Galra, but without any fur, smaller ears, not able to be bend in various directions. No claws, but fingernails. A pale skin colour.  
It's a human male. Kihe gulps.

“Any injuries?”, he asks, trying to not sound as shaken as he feels.  
“A shattered left knee”, the human answers, his voice rough and hoarse from lack of usage, his light brown hair falls in his face, covers his eyes. He wouldn't look at Kihe.  
“Where from? What species?”, he asks although he knows the answer.  
“Earth, human”  
He nods, scribbles, “Next”  
  


 

 

He didn't even finish sorting and presenting his results to the Druids as the alarm sirens go down. A prisoner escaped his cell. It's a chaos when he arrives, Galra warriors shouting at the alien, beating them to a pulp. It's the human male, Kihe recognises. He's not trying to run anymore, just lets the punching and kicking happen. He wouldn't put up a fight, he knows he doesn't stand a chance. But his eyes burn with a fierce and unfearing will.

“Enough”, Kihe growls and the warriors desist from their actions, making room for the Druid to get to the alien. They sure have some respect, not for him, but for the black and purple lightning crackling around his outstretched hand. He lets some sparks hit the ground near their feet and near the body lying defeated on the floor.

“Stand”, he demands, “and follow”  
The human does as he says and Kihe wouldn't dare to show how relieved he is about it, he wouldn't have liked to hurt the other any further.

He leads the human back to the prisoner's cells, but not to the one he was in before.  
“Special treatment?”, a cocky voice scoffs as he pushes open an empty cell.  
“I'll be right back”, Kihe says, “Don't go running again”  
There is no malice in his words and apparently that's what the other irritates, so all he gets is a confused “Okay?”

He hurries to his room, grabs the bag hidden under his bed, and rushes out again. The human is still in his cell, sitting in a corner, legs pressed to his chest and arms folded around his knees.

“That was fast”, he comments on Kihe's early return.  
The Galra only stares at him. Then pushes his hood back, his ears now out in the open, his black hair a little dishevelled. He kneels down in front of the human, opens the bag in his hands and mutters, “Take off your clothes”  
The human harrumphes, “No”

Kihe looks up, those hazel brown eyes are still glittering with pure willpower. He sighs.  
“I know I'm Galra and I know I shouldn't care about your wounds”, he explains.  
“But it's my duty to look after the prisoners and it feels good to be able to actually _look after_ someone instead of only send them into despair, pain and death”

He shows the tools in his hands, a bottle of disinfectant and a towel, compresses, gauzes and bandages next to him. “Just let me do this”  
The human slowly begins to undress, uncertain what to think about Kihe, “You're a weird one”  
Kihe smiles, “Thanks, I guess...”, then he starts tending to the bruises and grazes and cuts.  
  


 

 

He decides to send the human into torturing. He had discussed it with his father. That would be best, he had said. Because that was the only option in which his odds to die were as low as possible. Humans are strong, not necessarily in muscle power, but they tend to have a very strong willpower, his father had told him, and he should know best. Kihe too had tasted a little of this willpower his father spoke of. He decided to trust his father, trust in the humans strong spirit.

It costs his everything to not overthink his decision. Those wounds look so, so awful. Deep cuts, some clear, some done with a saw-toothed blade tearing skin into shreds. Deep burns, melting flesh. Broken bones. Swelling bruises everywhere.  
He glances into his brown eyes, and he sees the pain and agony in them. And he sees the fire still burning and raging on. He cleans the wounds in silence, stitches them up, applies some medicine on the burns and bruises, bandages the human and patches him up.  
“Thanks”, it's thin and hushed, but Galra have good ears, so Kihe hears him. He smiles and leaves without a word.

“Why would you tend to his wounds so carefully?”, he gets asked, “Why the solitary cell?”  
He knows he has to be damn cautious with his answer, “Is it not helpful?”  
The Druid glares at him, “How would it be?”  
He turns around, starts walking away from the cells.  
“It is the only human exemplar we have on this research ship”, he feels the malicious stare, “And there are only two records of other human prisoners in the system, one in a work camp and too weak to be experimented on, the other being the so called 'Champion' who was able to flee”  
He stops and looks over his shoulder, a mischievous grin on his lips, “I thought it would do us some good to be careful about such a rare example, would you not agree?”

He knows the other Druid knows he cares for the human out of other reasons. But he knows the other Druid knows she could not proof it, or call the treatment something rebellious, with the reasonable explanation he had delivered. He knows it drives her mad, because she would very gladly accuse him of something rebellious, so she could finally kick his ass, if not his head off his shoulders.  
  


 

 

He comes by more often now, to see how the human is doing. One time, he founds him asleep.  
Kihe sits down on the cold, hard ground and watches the other in his slumber. At first he doesn't notice the little twitches, the muted sobs and the silent cries. But then he realises, he is sleeping in a nightmare. He ponders if waking him up would be a good idea. When he suffers from a nightmare he always wishes for being woken up.  
“Hey”, he urges, grabbing his shoulder, rattling him.  
The other lets out a pained whine, then suddenly jerks awake, eyes wide and breathing heavily.  
Kihe pins him against the floor, hand still on his shoulder, the other next to his head. He knows he would look dangerous, he would scare the other, but he does so nonetheless. His stare doesn't falter, his body is motionless. Until the human beneath him would come back to his senses, calming down a little.

“Better?”, Kihe whispers to not startle the other.  
The human nods, “Yeah...”  
With that Kihe retreats, still careful about his movements.  
“Do you...”, Kihe looks away, unsure about if it's okay to ask what he is going to ask, “Do you wanna talk about it? The nightmares I mean...”  
“Would you wanna talk about them if you were in my shoes?”, is the response.

The human lies still next to Kihe. He doesn't seem to expect an answer.  
Kihe has insomnia. He can't sleep, unless his body gives out or he'd be put under. And then, the nightmares kick in. He never saw the Colosseum, nor did he knew what experiments the prisoners would have to go through and he never was inside the torture chamber, he was never in one of the work camps either. But he doesn't have to actually _see_ to be able to _imagine_.  
And oh, how is he able to imagine.

“I dream about what it is like to be in your shoes. How all the aliens I have to sort and list and filter are tortured with all kinds of tools. I dream about how they get slaughtered in the Colosseum, I hear they scream and cry and die. I dream about the experiments, about the dissections. I dream about my father, about my brother, although I don't know how he looks like. But he is my twin, so I guess he looks like me, at least a little...”  
Silence settles in again. Soft breathing, in and out...and in...and out.  
“I dream”, Kihe hears from next to him, “about my family, too”  
Kihe turns to look at the other. He still lies there, arms next to his body, eyes closed.  
“I dream about how my friend saved me, he smashed my left leg so I wouldn't have to fight in the Colosseum. I haven't seen it but I dream about how he died. He told me to take care of my father, but I never saw my father again since that day”, he stops and thinks, then continues, “I couldn't even tell how many days actually passed, all became a blur... And sometimes I dream about my little sister and my mother back on earth, how they don't know I'm still alive...”  
  


 

 

Kihe thumbs through one of his father's books about human anatomy.  
“You found what you wanted to know?”, his father asks.  
“Hn”, he lets out a breath he didn't noticed he had held, “Haa... This is so damn interesting! Compared to what the human race knows about themselves, our knowledge about the Galra biology is a really bad joke!”, he exclaimes fascinated.  
His father laughs one of his deep, rolling laughs, “Yeah, and not only about themselves, dear. They have knowledge about nearly every living being on their planet, and that, my son, is only biology. They succeed to be brilliant in most sciences, in physics and chemistry and medicine and politics and art and so on. Can you believe they speak 6500 to 7000 different languages solely on their own planet? And I only taught you one...”  
Kihe opens his mouth, closes it again. Looks from his father to the book in his hands and frowns.  
“Why didn't they conquer the universe? They totally could, they would fuck us up and mop the floor with us...”  
His father laughes again, “Exactly because they're so busy with themselves”  
He pats Kihe's head, “But I got hooked on them too, that's why I became a researcher instead of a warrior”  
“You're not a researcher, dad”, Kihe says, reading the book again, “You're a cartographer and I'm damn glad about it”  
  


 

 

With his newfound knowledge he goes back to the prison cells.  
As he sees the Galra coming in with the book in hand, the human points at it, “What happened to your digital one?”  
“Nothing”, Kihe shows him the book, “That's one of your kind's”  
The other inspects it, then gives it back, “How did you get it? And how can you read that thing, not to mention understanding it...”  
Kihe chuckles at that, “Oh it's very interesting, really! And so helpful to understand your body, I wanted to check out if your wounds look like their supposed to look like, so I asked my father about it”

He nudges the other so he would take off his clothes. He does his checking while he explaines.  
“My father is a cartographer, and he visited earth once. I learned all I know from him, and I couldn't get any luckier as with him as father. He is by no means a Galra warrior like the ones you encountered, and I guess that rubbed off on me. Sure, he got into trouble because of that, and I got, too. We're not welcome here, but we're useful, so they didn't got rid of us until now”  
He holds the book next to a particular sore burn for comparison. It seems to be doing okay.  
“So”, the human rises his voice, lying on his back, “you two are scientists?”  
Remembering what his father told him about humans and science, he denies it, “Not in the sense of your 'scientists' I'm afraid. We're just way too curious for our own good”  
The human smiles at him, sorrow lingering on his lips, “Same here. My dad and I were scientists out of passion, send on a mission for research and abducted by aliens”  
Kihe closes the book, strokes over the burn, his touch as light as a feather.  
  


 

 

It becomes part of his routine. Checking, scribbling, reporting, escorting, and tending the humans wounds. And slowly he feels something awaken again within himself, little by little. As if the fire sparkling in those hazel brown eyes had ignited something. He tells his father, who laughs at that.  
“Well”, he chuckles, caressing his son's cheek lovingly, “You are half human after all”  
“Dad that's...”, Kihe huffs, “I know”  
“I love you, dear”  
“I know, dad. I love you too”  
His father looks as if about to cry. He takes his hand in his own, leaning into the touch, slightly purring.  
“I'm so glad you're with me”, his father whispers, tears not falling, but present in his voice, “If only...”  
“Shh”, Kihe strokes his father's cheek with his free hand in a similar way, hushing him silent with his fingers, gently sealing his fathers lips. “I know”  
  


 

 

“How do I get out of here?”  
The question startles Kihe. He is with the human prisoner, finished with checking on the healing progress of the wounds, now watching him eat his soup. “What?”  
“I wanna get out. I have to”, determination lies in his voice, his face, his eyes.  
Kihe will always loose against those eyes, so full of live. Always so full of energy, even directly after returning from the torture chamber, but much more now, that he has nearly recovered.

“And you are asking that _me_?”, he answers, “Who has failed to break out so many times?”  
The other chokes at his soup, “You tried breaking out? But you're a Galra! Why would you?”  
He agreed to his father not to tell him about him being half human, but this weird something inside him urges him to do so, to open up to that human. At least a little.  
“Because I'm not”, he mumbles, “I'm half”

“You're half Galra”, the other states dumbfounded.  
“Which it self respecting creature would mate a Galra?”, he asks in disbelief.  
Kihe is hurt. He scowls down on the human, growls and takes the food away he brought with him and stomps to the door.  
“Ah wait!”, the human calls after him, “Sorry, don't be mad at me!”, he apologises, when Kihe looks back he sees him pleading nervously, “I'm sorry, give me back the food...?”

He stares until the human gets uncomfortable under his watch, scratching his neck.  
“Ah, I mean, the Galra are horrible and cruel, but you're pretty okay”, he gestures at his body, “You cared for me? I don't know, which it self respecting Galra would care for a prisoner? You folks are so damn proud and arrogant and-” “I get it”, Kihe gives the soup back and leaves.  
  


 

 

He wanders through the long corridors, light dim and glowing, his mind echoing the humans words.

_How do I get out of here?_

He had asked himself the very same question a hundred times, not getting near to an answer.  
Is it even possible? Not only getting out, but leaving the Galra behind? He knows that it is not, it is impossible. There will always be his Galra blood rushing through his veins, his purple fur and ears and yellow eyes and the Galra energy within his whole being. He can't ever escape the Galra.  
And that human male, he will always carry scars on his body, scars in his soul. He won't ever forget about the Galra. So no, there is no way of escaping the Galra, they have been captured and once captured, it is impossible to break free ever again.

He can't tell him that, though. He doesn't want to see the lively eyes turn dull. It would truly tear his heart into pieces. But then, Kihe stops in his tracks and thinks again. How to get out of here. As in, get out of my room? Out of my sight? Perhaps he only asked him the way out of this ship, like, literally the way? Maybe he didn't meant it the way Kihe had understood it? Getting out of here in terms of just escaping, physically, but not mentally?

Kihe laughs at himself, the raucous sound clanging in the hollow corridors startling everyone catching it. The notion of a Druid laughing insanely sends cold shivers down their spines and makes their hair stand on ends and their eyes widen.  
Well, fleeing the ship is by no means an impossible thing. There were many others capable of doing so, like 'Champion' did. He wasn't the first prisoner escaping. And he won't be the last.  
Kihe himself would have nothing out of fleeing the ship, because it wouldn't matter where he is, he would always somehow belong to the Galra. But if the human wants to get out, why not?

Why not. Kihe's attempts to escape all had failed, even when his father had tried to help him. His father had always wished for them to escape. To return to earth, where his twin brother is. They never talk about his mother, the female that gave birth to him and his twin, they only ever talk about this mystery brother. How much his father wants them to meet, to reunite. How much he loves both of them, how much he wishes for both of them to be safe and sound. How fond he is of them, how proud. How beautiful and unique they are, how special and wonderful. Kihe always listens to his father, not arguing about it. And with every outburst and flood of love over his two perfect and admirable sons, Kihe learnt to adopt the feelings. He loves his brother unconditionally.  
So, why not? He will always be part Galra, but why not getting out, fulfilling his father's dream of them going back? Kihe thinks about it, it wasn't totally impossible, not really.  
  


 

 

“I'm sorry, shouldn't judge a book by it's cover...”, the human tries to apologise again.  
“I get it”, Kihe repeats his words from his last visit, “But not every Galra likes Zarkon and his reign or the warriors, as well as not every other species out there stands against it or holds a grudge against every single Galra”  
The human nods, the soup Kihe had brought him again forgotten. He regrets his harsh words, seeing the other so down. They sit in silence for a while, until Kihe speaks up again.  
“I have a twin brother, back on your planet, you know. Earth is not conquered yet, and they don't know about the Galra coming for them, so my father and I tried to go back several-”  
“Wait”, the other interrupts when realising the meaning behind the Galra's words.  
“O-on my planet? So... so you're half human?”, he stutters confused.

Kihe nods and smiles sadly, and when he turns around, the human sees just perfectly how broken the other is. He tried to save his brother, and failed. Instead he had to face cruelty and sorrow and pain and death every fucking day. No wonder he insisted on taking care of him.

Kihe inhales deeply, although it's unsteady. “You gonna eat this or can I have it?”  
The human looks down at the food in his hands. An obvious change of topics, but if the other wouldn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't dig for more.  
“Don't you have your own?”, he asks with a little pout, he likes the soup Kihe brought him.  
“This _is_ my own”, Kihe says with a laugh, “Or did you really think the prisoners would get something as nutritious as soup? They get a disgusting mush of I don't even want to know what”  
The human stares baffled, “You're giving me your food? Then what are you eating?”  
“Yours”, Kihe smiles and the other shakes his head. “I don't get you...”  
But he gives the rest of the soup back to it's original owner, though it's not very much left.

Watching Kihe eating up he asks, “Hey... what's your name? You visited me so often I even lost track, but I never asked for your name...”  
“Kihe”, he says with a faint smile, “Yours?”  
“I'm Matt”, he answers with a smile as well.  
It falls from his lips, though, as Kihe stands up and is about to leave.

“Listen Kihe”, Matt calls out to him, “I have my little sister and my mother back on earth and my father still being imprisoned somewhere. And also-”, he gulps, “Also my friend who saved my life”  
His eyes are full of unshed tears and full of burning flames all the same.  
“I have to get out, I have to survive, I...”  
Matt's body trembles at the loss of words, he rips his gaze away from Kihe.  
And Kihe reaches out to him, gives him one firm hug, and tells him, “Understood”  
He is gone without a look back.

 

 


	2. Those Without Fear

Matt is not sure about exactly why he trusts this Galra. Half Galra. Half human. Alien.  
Is it the way he speaks to him? The way he looks at him? Or really just the kind actions of actual care? He can't tell, but it doesn't matter either. He just needs a way to get out, if Kihe is his way out, he will take this chance with all the risks it may bear.  
  


Kihe didn't came back after their last conversation, what leaves Matt with too much free time and room to ponder and wonder. He had changed quite a bit, hadn't he? He used to be serene, he enjoyed the little things. He wasn't much of a handful, he barely fought or quarrelled. He was everything but strong and determined when he faced the Colosseum, he was scared and frightened and was sure he wouldn't make it.

And here he is now, absolute to make it out. They changed him, he thinks, those aliens turned him into a fighter. Because oh how is he ready to fight. He didn't want to be strong, or self-confidant. He was very content with his old self, his friendly and easy self. He is different now, after he learned what pain and agony is, only to forget how to feel them. After he learned the loss of a beloved one, the true meaning behind the words 'fear' and 'panic'. Now that he knows what it feels like to lose his mind, to turn a little mad inside. Now that he feels alarmingly calm bloodlust.  
Oh. That's how to name it? He smiles, a very, _very_ scary smile which comes from the realisation of a horror he might be fond of. He snickers at the absent of the heated wrath he is sure should have come along with this newfound feeling. But it didn't.

He could be distressed about this change in character, but he isn't. Why not? Could as well get his hands on everything useful. And a notch insanity sure could come in handy when trying to accomplish something insane.  
  


They hadn't discussed any kind of escape plan, so he just does what he considers best to do when the alarms start blaring and the doors shoot open.

He stays. Listening to prisoners screaming and running and foots trampling past his door, drones not even glancing in his direction. He just sits and waits, still astonishingly calm.

He hears shooting, the weird sound laser blasters make when their trigger is pulled. He hears lightning, the sizzling noise this weird Galra energy makes when their wielder throws it around. It's a pure chaos out there.

Then, Kihe returns with another Galra in row, which must be his father.  
“Make haste”, Kihe hisses, pushing a backpack in his hands. He puts it on and follows them.

It's like playing hide-and-seek, Matt thinks and shakes his head. With a touch of the life or death situation they actually are in. They move slowly, Kihe leading them, avoiding skilfully the havoc they had caused.

“May I ask how?”, Matt whispers at one point.  
“Not very difficult”, Kihe's father answers, “Hardware may be more advanced, but the software is archaic in comparison to yours. Especially the safety and control systems”  
He wears a smug smile and winks at Matt and Matt returns the smile.

Kihe sprints towards the next corner they could take shelter in, positive the other two would follow. There were no complications so far, his father had choreographed the system brake downs and alarm calls just perfectly.  
  


It had never taken much, a little distraction here and there, timed moves, some stealth.  
But there were reasons to why they never made it out. Kihe would never leave his father behind, as well as his father never would leave Kihe behind.  
  


Kihe hears a monstrous roar, and notices the painful absence of his comrades.

He looks back, and sees Matt pressed against the wall a few steps behind him.

His father holds him up, his strong fingers clenching around his throat.

Before he can react he hears the ugly sound of bones being cracked in one quick motion.

His father presses a deep growl through his bared teeth, threatening and feral, as he scoots away from Matt.

Drones come washing in and open fire.

And within an instant, they are part of the chaos.  
  


Kihe feels raw wrath boiling up, his blood becomes a burning liquid raging inside him. Sheer energy floods every fibre of his being, waves of the inner explosion vibrating within his body, clearing his mind in one flash, enhancing his senses to an awful maximum.  
He sees his fathers broken arm, bones sticking out, he hears his fast heartbeat and breathing, hears the blood dripping down, tastes its smell on his tongue, smells his fathers pain and fear.  
He feels his inner beast roaring and is about to unlash it.

But when he jumps to his fathers side, ready to protect, ready to kill, his father slashes down at him, his claws slicing deep into his son's flesh. Then he gets hit by lightning, the impact sends him flying to the ground.

He hears the Druid cackle, she enjoys his pain and his confusion.

His vision blurs, the shock from being thrown out of his instinctive behaviour still pulses through his body, paralysing him.

He hears the shrill laughing come to an abrupt stop at the same time he hears bones being cracked again, followed by the dull thunk of a limp body colliding with the floor.

Matt didn't hesitate killing the Druid, and he sure doesn't hesitate grabbing Kihe's arm, wrenching him towards another corridor, away from the massacre.

Kihe wouldn't leave his father behind, but Matt, Matt sure would.  
His father knew, Kihe sees the small relieved smile on his father's pained face before it vanishes.

Matt drags Kihe along, not knowing which way they should take.  
“Where to?”, he yells at Kihe. He slumps down in a bypath, breathing heavily.  
Kihe still seems to be in a daze, he doesn't answer or react in any way.  
“Shit...”

What now. He thinks. What now.  
Adrenalin pumping through his body, his thoughts rushing through his consciousness like on a speedway. What does he have? What can be of use? They need to leave the ship, so they need something they can pilot themselves. Maybe fighters? Like in Sci-Fi movies? Do the Galra have something like this? Maybe. And where? Something like a hangar? Maybe. Does he know how to get there? Maybe? Hell, he doesn't even know where they are right now!

Okay, first things first, they have to move. He tries waking Kihe, then considers leaving him as well. Is he of any use? If he would come back to his senses, yes. If not, no. Matt curses under his breath and tries to shoulder him, only to let out a strangled noise of “Grwaargh!”

The backpack! He lets Kihe fall down again and yanks the thing open, searches for anything of use. There are some devices he has no idea of what they are, but takes Kihe's hand in his, touching them so they would activate. Most of it shows him Galra gibberish, but then a map finally pops out of one and he stuffs everything else back, shoulders Kihe and hurries towards what looks like a hangar on the map.

He sometimes triples over, his lungs ache, the Galra are still after them. When they reach the hangar, Kihe slowly begins to move again. He still doesn't react to Matt's words, but he opens the door by laying his hand on the panel.

Inside, he starts tipping something onto another control panel. Matt wouldn't complain about Kihe finally doing something, if it wouldn't be so _damn slowly_.

The hangar is not big, and the Galra appear to have little fighter ships stored in here. There aren't many, but this ought to be a research ship after all.

He sprints over to a fighter moving out of his parking spot, the one Kihe apparently had prepared for them to make their escape with. The thick glass front shield opens and Matt crawls inside, followed by Kihe.

There is only one seat, so Kihe ends up sitting in Matt's lap, but neither of them cares much. They can get out. They are only some seconds away form actually escaping. For real.

When Kihe rises his voice, it sounds like his throat has been thoroughly sandpapered, hoarse and rough and cracking and dry.  
“Backpack”, he demands, “Little cube”

Matt gets it and hands the cube over. As soon as Kihe touches it a huge map of the universe appears, glowing in dim lilac. Or a part of the universe, as Kihe moves between the coordinates and stars and planets and galaxies with his hand pushing through air, until he reaches a white point, glowing stronger than the rest of the map.

He breathes in deeply, then out slowly. “Okay, listen”, he starts.  
“I'm about to open a wormhole, we'll get through it, and will end up near the planet Tror, do you know who the Ishi are?”  
“No, I don't”  
“Okay, most important right now, they have managed to form some kind of an organized resistance in order to protect their planet. Though they're not fighting the Galra actively they do so passively, and we're in a Galra ship. So use this to make contact and send a distress signal”, Kihe explains and shows how to work on the control panels of the fighter.  
“I'll most probably faint as soon as I close the wormhole, so you have to pilot this thing like this”, he explains and shows again quickly.  
There are so many questions Matt wants to ask, about the cube, about wormholes, about to where they're headed, but now is not the time, so he listens carefully to understand what Kihe says.

“Ready?”, Kihe looks back over his shoulder at Matt, exhausted and tired.  
Matt holds onto Kihe's waist, squeezes it, and nods.

Kihe turns around and a giant portal emerges from nothing. Matt's heart starts pounding like crazy in his chest, and as near as he is to Kihe, he must notice. This shit really is happening. That's a wormhole in front of them. But then again, that's an alien on his lap, in an alien space ship.  
  


The Galra didn't even reach the hangar, they take their leave, and there is no shooting after them, no heated race through space. Their escape is so very not movie cliché.

Travelling through a wormhole seems to take forever, but then, it seems to only take one or two seconds. It's a really confusing feeling, mixing up all sense of time and space, confusing for the head and stomach too. But Matt has no time for his nausea, because Kihe faints, just as he had foreseen, and collapses on his lap, nearly crashing into the control panels.

“Shit”, Matt breathes sharply, as he tries to steady Kihe and simultaneously tries to get hold of the ships movements.

He remembers sending out the signal, explaining they're escaped prisoners, before he as well collapses and everything goes numb and his vision blurs and turns black.

 

 


	3. Between Worlds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not happy with this chapter :/  
> I struggled with the second half of it, rewriting it every time I reread it...  
> There may be typos or/and some weird sentences, please tell me so I'm routine-blinded by now
> 
> And I need help with tagging this O.O  
> Any suggestions?

Matt is the first to wake up from unconsciousness. He blinks, the little movement costs way too much energy, his eyelids feel heavy. He moans, his body is aching everywhere. Fidgeting a little, he bumps his arm into the body resting next to his. Kihe is still out.  
He never looked much at the other, still not used to see more than just a Galra in Kihe's appearance. But now, with the warm glow of sunlight falling on his sleeping face, Matt inspects every inch of it, as if he sees this creature for the first time.

Kihe's mouth hangs open a little, just enough for Matt to get a glimpse at his sharp teeth. His lips are chipped, but look like if they were soft when touched. His cheeks slightly curve inwards, accentuating his cheekbones more than they should. Ah, right... He had been bringing Matt his own food, he must have lost some weight over that. His eyes are closed, hiding his yellow orbs. His ears are more like those of a cat's than a doberman's, which makes the most significant difference in Kihe's appearance compared to those of the other Galra's. They begin where a human ear would be, and cover nearly the whole sides of his head. They were coated with short but fluffy purple fur, finishing in a longer brush at the tip, much like a lynx's ear brush. Kihe's hair is black and long, it falls in gentle waves over his forehead, down to his shoulders.  
Matt frowns. Actually, he must admit, actually Kihe could be described as pretty.

He growls in discomfort as he tries to sit up. His head feels clouded and airy, at some point he knows that he has to figure out where they are, but his thoughts never linger around that point long enough to turn into actions. So he just sits there, looking around lazily.

The first thing he notices about their surroundings is the constant breeze ghosting over his face and through his hair, ghosting along with the feeling of warm light. Then, a nice scent, of grass and bland air. A feeling of weightlessness. A vast green sky. He stares at it, unwittingly clenching his hands into fists, digging at the ground. The sky should be blue, right? And the ground shouldn't be as soft to the touch... And grass shouldn't be pastel pink either...

He stares at his hands, watching the crumbs of dirt drifting off and away. Then he inspects his surroundings once more, this time paying more attention to it. He can't see the horizon, the light green stretching endlessly. They are on some kind of cliff, with some kind of chasm in front of them. He dares to peek over it, but isn't able to process the non existence of any kind of ground. He crawls back next to Kihe. The meadow they are on is framed by the chasm. It is not small, but he can't make out anything else but grass and grass going on and on...  
Matt is fascinated and charmed, and a bit spaced out...  
  


“Ugh...”, Kihe coughs after a while, slowly turning over as if he first has to remember how his body functions. Then he leans on his forearms and knees, head falling low between his shoulders. He coughs again.

“Hi”, Matt rubs his back soothingly.  
“Hi...”, Kihe mumbles.  
“You look like shit”, Matt states, matter of factly.  
Kihe cocks his head, glances up at Matt.  
“Feel like shit, too”, he assures him.

After Kihe is fully awake and able to stand up, they decide to walk a bit, just to see if they really are stranded on an island in the sky. On a pink meadow island in a ridiculously huge green sky. Kihe stumbles a few times, Matt is always right beside him, catches him without a comment, as well as Kihe catches Matt when the other stumbles.  
  


It appears that the only connection to somewhere else is a thick root or vine like bridge, leading into milky green clouds. Neither Matt nor Kihe feels like adventuring at the moment, still wobbly on their legs and minds still fogged and robbed off the ability to focus, so they just lay down again.

The sky turns into pitch black, the grass switches from it's pastel pink to a deep, heavy mix of red and purple, starting to glow in the process. The bridge starts to glow as well, a light honey brown colour indicating where it leads into dark emptiness. Day turns into night, and all the light shifts from sky to earth. They can see the dim glow of other islands shining through the cloud and mist, far away, all around them.

The native aliens glow as well, golden sparks of light streaming in little trickles through their body, as if illuminating their blood, creating fascinating patterns across their limbs, like a gleaming tattoo, only much more natural, for it is being woven deep into not only almost transparent skin, but also dancing around muscles and bones.

Matt is a bit baffled at the sight, but he reminds himself, he is just not used it. He doesn't understand what Kihe and the alien are talking about, though he doesn't care about it much either. He could question Kihe when they head towards the odd bridge, but he doesn't feel like asking, doesn't feel like complaining.  
  


 

 

Matt needs some time to get used to all of it. The gas planet Tror contains many floating islands, sometimes connected by roots, sometimes only to reach with a sky ship. Most of the big ones are caved, with cities within, busy like a bustling beehive. Matt is not used to live underground. Not used to only trust his steps when stepping on something that glows in the dark from it's bioluminescence, every other texture too weak to hold any weight. He is not used to the very quick turns of day and night, and he needs time to get used to the many different kind of alien species that life on Tror or are passing through. He's not used to Kihe's broken English, and not used to don't understand anything else too, Tror doesn't provide a translator with earth's languages. He needs time to get used to the lighter gravity, and by chance Kihe buys them clothes made of some kind of steel yarn, heavy enough for them to not trip as often anymore. He needs time to grow used to the food, to the work they have to do to earn it. He needs time to get used to Kihe and him being around each other permanently, to actually sleep in an actual bed again, to not need to constantly be in fight or flight mode. It takes some time, but Kihe gives him all the time he needs.  
  


Eventually, Matt still isn't used to everything, but eventually they manage to start tinkering on an old space ship, wrecked and forgotten, his previous owner happy to get rid of it. Tror comes up with a wide range of different ships due to its scattered landscape, and getting hands on repair parts and such things is easy enough.  
  


“Hey there!”, Kihe hears a female voice calling, and after a quick look around he finds the alien lady strolling inside the garage they are renting.  
“Hi”, he greets and sets his work aside, recognising the other being the alien they first met on this planet. “What can I do for you?”  
She shakes her head, her long white hair sways from left to right, the leaves growing out of her strands rustle like autumn foliage. “I wanted to check on you, wouldn't want you falling down”  
“If it weren't for your reaction to our distress signal, we sure would've fallen”, Kihe smiles. To fall down has a whole different meaning to it on this planet.  
The other laughs friendly, “You nearly crashed into my ship! And after I found you in such a horrible condition dragging you to a healing meadow was the least I could do”  
She nods towards the space ship they are working on, “You guys stranded here barely four years ago, and already have a ship”

He nods at that. They are restless, with the Galra probably tracking them down already, they had to act as soon as possible. Their wounds weren't healed, their minds neither. They were in a really battered state, physically as well as mentally, when they had started to push themselves to work. They still are, not having stood still since, not allowing themself to pause once.

The alien's expression is serious now, “You claim to be on the run, and the other one trusts you with his life, which was the only reason I saved _you_ as well”, she pauses, her white eyes staring at him with an appraising look, “It still is the only reason. I don't trust the Galra, though you don't seem to cause trouble”

Kihe flinches. Then smiles sadly when he notices Matt watching them from afar. He wouldn't understand the words, but he would understand the cold tone they're spoken with.

“The quickness of your recovery and your eagerness towards the preparations to leave the planet, along with the things I witnessed the both of you are capable of enduring, makes me wary. So I'm here to tell you this”, she holds her head high, points at her, than Kihe, than Matt, her voice is unfaltering and ultimate, “I'm the Ishi La Lic Ta, you are the Galra Kihe and the Human Matt. You will fly with me, or you will fall”  
  


 

 

Kihe doesn't sleep after his conversation with La Lic Ta. In the terms of this planet, he skips sleep for a week or two. While Matt grows worried, he can relate, he isn't sleeping either.  
He keeps Kihe company, sitting next to him, leaning against their ship soon able to fly.

“I haven't thanked you...”, Matt whispers deep in thought, “I haven't thanked you yet, for getting us out...”  
Kihe nods absentmindedly, “I haven't thanked you yet as well...”  
Matt snorts at that, “How sappy, sleep deprivation getting to you?”  
“You started it”, Kihe snickers, “And... let's say I'm used to it...”  
Matt frowns at him, “Right, nightmares...”  
“Nightmares... and night terror, sleepwalking... every shit that comes with insomnia”, Kihe huffs bitterly. “I only ever dare to take tiny naps, a few minutes to rest. Not long enough for anything to happen, but you can't call that a pleasant sleep either”, he explains, a bit gloomy. They fall silent after that, their thoughts wandering off each on their own way.

Night turns into day and Matt's eyes are closed when Kihe suddenly asks, “Want to see my human form?”  
“You have a human form?”  
Kihe smiles and starts shifting, his ears vanish beneath his hair, his purple fur disappears and pale skin comes to light, the yellow of his eyes zooms out and is replaced with a mauve iris and the white part of a human eye. His smile stays the same, though.  
Matt simply gapes at him, both astonished and fascinated by Kihe's new appearance. He reaches out, touches Kihe's cheek, to make sure what he just saw really had happened. He traces his fingertips towards Kihe's ear, cautiously brushing away the black hair, and follows the shape of a human earlobe. What tickles Kihe. He laughs and catches Matt's roaming hand, reaches out with his other and gives Matt's chin a soft push upwards to close it again.  
“You know what”, Matt asks staring dead into his eyes, voice sincere and serious, “You're awesome”  
Kihe laughs again, “I'm a Galra!”  
“An awesome Galra then”, Matt pouts.  
“But a Galra nevertheless”, he sighs and lets go of Matt's hand.  
He turns around, gazes in abstraction at anything and nothing, “La Lic Ta wants us to join her fleet, or wants us dead”  
“Is that what you two had talked about recently?”, Matt still marvels at the human Kihe, his face holds more emotions now, has more soft traits to it than sharp ones.  
He can see the nod, but also the slight unease in the way his brows are hunched together, the discontent brooding in the way his teeth gnaw at his bottom lip.  
“Guess we should join her then”, he lets himself fall on his back, staring at the ceiling is less distracting him, “We can still get lost on one of her rescue missions”  
It wouldn't be all that fair, but whatever, life isn't fair, is it...

 

 


	4. Unchained

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: this chapter contains PTSD Matt and descriptions of violence  
> If you can't handle such content or feel uneasy about it, please be careful while reading

Their first attempt to fly was bumpy, to say the least. They struggled, like, a lot. Mostly because they entrusted Matt with piloting, so they changed that. Very quickly.  
“You are. The worst. Pilot. Ever”, Kihe had hissed, and they had switched places in midair.  
With Kihe piloting and Matt assisting they both felt saver.  
  


La Lic Ta is the commander of the rescue squad of Tror, flying out there to save what little can be saved from Zarkon's clutches.  
“You'll need a name”, she told them, “Every ship under my command has a name”  
And after their first trip, saving a Rointarian ship from a few Galra fighters, Kihe insisted on letting the Rointa they had saved name their ship.  
“But it already has a name...”, one of them had whispered, voice thin and broken, “It's your core, your Tani. It will not fly without you, and you will not fly without it”, they had smiled wearily and had shown them their torn apart wings, well actually the remains of one wing, “A Tani can't fly with one wing alone... But your Tani has two good wings on it, so race the wind and fly”  
Kihe had cried for days, had huddled himself into his bed and just cried. Silent tears, silent screams, Matt hadn't asked. Matt hadn't asked, had just silently rubbed his back or hummed until he stopped shivering so violently. Had just hold him thigh through his night terror attacks or his nightmares, ignoring the fact that he would have bruises the next day.  
  


 

 

“Shit!”, Matt screams, “Shit, Kihe NOW!”  
Kihe yanks at his control sticks, pulling them left just in time, the asteroid rushes past them only a few millimetres.  
“Shoot 'em!”, Kihe yells back at Matt.  
Kihe whirls Tani around, Matt aims at the Galra fighters and in one fluid motion they turn and twist around, avoiding the giant rocks in the asteroid field, taking down their numerous enemies, all while shouting at each other.

“How're we supposed to bail out?!”, Matt growls.  
They'd planned to silently 'ship wreck' into the asteroid field, 'getting lost' in it. But with being tasked to escort the stranded ship back to Tror again, they would left the survivors inside the huge black, cat like ship behind to die. And they had agreed to that issue, no more dying. Not them, not others.

“Fuck it, Matt, SHOOT 'EM!”, Kihe calls out, spinning around, running out the cockpit.  
“You kiddin' me?!”, Matt yells but Kihe doesn't answer. He's without pilot now. Great. He trusts Kihe though, even if he could want to wring his neck right now. So he aims again and opens fire.

They collide with the ship they're supposed to protect, but Matt never stops hitting the Galra with his laser blasters. He grins devilishly when the white beams start to fizzle with purple-black electricity. Kihe's energy has this effect, and he loves Kihe's energy, whether the deconstructive or reconstructive one. He loves to see the Galra ships exploding, colliding with the rocks, chaining another explosion. He loves to shoot Kihe's energy into their enemies, loves to be in control of this creepy power. The little swarm of fighters that had managed to follow them falls apart, one by one by one.

“You having fun?”, Kihe asks from behind Matt.  
“Just look at 'em”, Matt laughs and catches Kihe's impish smile.  
“They're done for”  
Matt nods at that, “Told you you're awesome, now back in your seat, pilot”

The rest is easy. They just have to activate Tani's tractor beam, fly back to Tror with the other ship in tow, leave everything else to La Lic Ta and her folks. They get back to their garage, safe and sound.

What is not easy though is to take care of the saved ones, out of two reasons. One, Kihe has no idea of how this ship functions, no idea of how to open it or how to make contact with those within so they could open the ship. His guess would be the muzzle of this...cat...ship? But it doesn't bug an inch. Reason two is Matt. He kind of loses it as soon as the muzzle does yank open and his pilot stumbles out of it.  
  


 

 

Shiro falls right into Matt's arms. He blinks a few times, it's hard to focus. Where begins and ends his body? It's hard to tell which limb is which. His vision is still unclear, he hears muffled voices calling his name.  
“Shiro”, Matt whispers.

Shiro looks at him, and feels like punched into his gut. Brown hair, tied into a pony-tail in the neck, hazel brown eyes. “M-matt?” Ugh, his voice sounds horrible.

“Matt!”, Shiro cries, throwing himself in Matt's arms even more, “Oh Matt! You're h-here...”  
Matt slowly reaches out to him, sliding his hand into his short hair. He is here. He is where?  
“M-matt... Matt...”, he sobs. Why. Why is Shiro here. And where is he?

Oh. Shiro. Shiro is here. He smiles up at him, a smile full of all his feelings. Hurt, and affection, but mostly hurt and sorrow, and guilt. The smile he gets from Shiro mirrors his.  
Then he slumps into the hold, both slide to the ground but still embrace each other tightly.

Matt starts cackling, then laughs, and laughs and laughs. He laughs to such extends, so loud and shrill it begins to scare the other, but Matt doesn't notice.

“So”, he finally manages to breath, “what now?”  
No one answers, but he doesn't seem to expect an answer.  
“Do you tear him away? Like you tear Katie away from me? It's getting boring”, he cackles again, stands up and lets go of Shiro way too harshly. “Or will you make me kill him this time?”, his grin is like that of a hungry beast, bloodlust spreads across his lips. “Will I slaughter him? Tell me, what will I do?”, he starts glancing around, starts stumbling through the garage, his hand tracing across everything in reach. Then, with a forceful launch, a violent twist of his body, he jumps backwards, crashing into Shiro and pressing him down to the ground, strangling him.  
Matt snickers at the sight, his friend looks so much like him, struggling for air.

He feels hands worming their way around his torso, stroking him so very temptingly, tension sparkling between the little layer of air separating the fingers from his body. Slowly, slowly fluttering over his chest, his throat, barely touching him though holding his chin firmly, making him look upwards.

Due to his distraction he loosens his grip on Shiro, who coughs painfully, desperately drinks in air, his lungs burn and his throat aches. He tries to crawl away, but Kihe sends a glare his way, daring him to stay just where he is. Shiro freezes at the sight of the Galra. The Galra who glares daggers at him, who holds Matt in this weird possessive way, who starts cackling too.

“So tell me, dear”, Kihe's right hand now clutches Matt's chin hard enough to leave bruises, “what do you want to do to him?” His voice is as shrill and surreal as Matt's laughter has been.  
Kihe moves his left hand from Matt's body to his face, caressing his cheeks in what could have been a loving way, but sends ice cold shivers through the whole room.  
His lips near Matt's ear, Kihe whispers, “Hurting? Slicing, biting, and tearing apart?”, his voice is piercing and icy and full of poisonous malice, “Lacerating a living being, bathing in warm blood... Feeling the last stutter of a heartbeat washing through their dying body?”

Matt shivers. Tears are running down his face, which looks bizarre with his creepy grin still plastered over his twitching lips. “'ve done that”, he aspirates as if in agony, “'s borin'”  
Kihe angles Matt's head further backwards, it must hurt by now.  
“Then...”, he purrs alluringly, “Do you want to embrace him, feel him safe against your chest? Do you want to feel his heart beating and his lungs breathing, his body warm and alive?”  
Matt nods slightly. He knows it will still end in a living nightmare, but for now, he wants to be able to believe the lie his friend is alive and safe and with him.

Kihe looks at Shiro, indicating with a small motion of his head that he has to move over, and do as he had told Matt and cuddle his friend. Too afraid not to oblige, and to irritated by the whole situation going on, he gulps and slowly reaches out for Matt. Matt holds his breath, not able to see with Kihe's hand now covering his eyes, he can only feel a shaking hand tentatively brushing his arm.  
“Shiro...”, he sighs, sorrow and tears and hurt muddling into a knot in his throat.  
He opens his arms in a welcoming gesture, and Shiro carefully wraps his own arms around the other. Matt hugs him tight, “I'm sorry...”, he susurrates, “Please forgive me...”

Over and over and over again, “I'm sorry... Please forgive me...”  
The shaking of his body increases, more and more tears stream down. He suffers.  
“I'm sorry...”, he sobs frantically and helplessly, “Don' hate me... I'm s-sorry... I-I...”

“That's enough”, Kihe hisses into Matt's ear.  
He immediately stops crying, shivering, breathing, moving at all. Shiro releases him and stumbles back, staring frightened at Kihe holding his friend.  
“You know what sight to expect when you open your eyes?”, Kihe snickers.  
Matt knows.

Kihe waits a few moments, to make sure Matt has given up, his body weighs defeated against his own. Then, he removes his hands from his face and embraces him, he fondly and carefully enfolds Matt in his arms, this time with all the tenderness he has.

When Matt opens his eyes, Shiro is there and slowly, hesitantly smiles at him.  
He is not dead, not torn to pieces, his face not distorted with horror and pain and hate.

Kihe buries his face in Matt's shoulder, hugging him tight against his chest.  
“It's real”, he sobs quivering words, “Matt, this is real”

Matt blinks a few times. He is in their garage, Tani rests in it's corner, work tools and work banks, dust and trash and bits and pieces of alien sky ship tech surrounds them. There are marks on Shiro's throat where he had strangled him. Matt looks at his hands, they are not covered in blood.  
“T-this... is not...?”, he coughs.  
“No”, Kihe whispers and hides in Matt's neck, “This is no illusion”  
  


It dawns upon Shiro then, that Kihe had simulated a mental torture session, just to make Matt believe him that this is not, that this is real.  
  


Matt turns towards Shiro as if his body was trapped in slow motion.  
“Shiro?”, he gasps, not able to think properly or to construct coherent sentences.  
Shiro glances at him, tears lingering in his dark eyes.  
“I... I defeated that monster...”, he knows what Matt had asked with just his name.  
“I was able to escape, I was able to return to earth...”, he rambles, still a little panicked and still very confused and irritated, “Then I ended up as a part of Team Voltron, as the Black Paladin... It's crazy but I fight against the Galra... We all do...”, he swallows and the tears start falling unbeknownst to him, “Pidge... I mean Katie, but we're calling her Pidge... She's the Green Paladin. Hunk is the Yellow Paladin and Lance is the Blue Paladin, Keith is the Red Paladin and I'm the Black Paladin and...and...”

Matt gingerly unwraps himself from Kihe, walks over to Shiro and helps him to stand up. Shiro stares into his eyes, there is still some angst in them, something feral, some guilt and stress, but also some relief and kindness, his voice is soft and warm as he speaks, “I don't know what you're talking about”

“They're gone...”, Shiro gasps painfully. His gaze is distant.  
“The wormhole... They're-ugh...”, he gags on his words before he falls back on his knees, clutching his right waistline. There is no blood, but the purple glowing wound alerts Kihe more than any blood could have.  
  


Shiro feels like shredded to pieces. One piece of his mind is in fighting mode, because there is a Galra in the room. One piece is confused to why Matt is here and where are they. Another piece is relieved because Matt seems to be safe. Another piece is worried and alarmed because Matt is clearly not okay. Another piece is still irritated and frightened by what just had happened. A very big part of his mind screams for him to go search for your teammates, help them, find them, safe them, protect them, _you're their leader goddammit!_ One part of his body feels like on electrical fire, burning and burning and hurting and aching so fucking much he feels like passing out every moment. His right arm feels heavy and alien, not a part of him, and the rest of his body feels like twisted and shaken and bended in itself and definitely not fitting together correctly, besides the frostiness and the sharp cold and icy sweat covering it and freezing into every fibre deep down to his very bones. And every piece tears his consciousness apart, claiming it, ignorant towards Shiro's desperate attempts of keeping them together and connected. They don't seem to be connected, he loses the overview of his own being, falls apart along with his mind and body.

 

 


	5. There's A Way

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like this chap, it's peaceful...  
> A lull before the storm...
> 
> Also tried to fix the extra line break problem, hope it's better now

“How's he?”, Matt asks concerned. His gaze flickers from Shiro's face to his bandaged wound back to Kihe. “Safe for now”, he mumbles tired and leaves the room, Matt follows him. They pad along the narrow corridor, and into Kihe's room. There are no doors, the concept of personal space works differently on Tror. Want to be left alone? Go out there, look for an uninhibited island for yourself to chill on. Down in the roomy halls and cramped tunnels everything is open, the workplaces, markets, kitchens, lounges and the sleeping places as well, even the bathrooms. Everyone could go everywhere, but oddly enough, everyone just knows where to be and where not to be. Everyone just knows their places, in more than one way. While it's somehow disturbing it is strangely reassuring at the same time.

Sitting down on his own bed, Kihe starts explaining, “The wound he carries originates from a mighty Galra Druid, their energy must have been powered by a huge amount of highly refined quintessence. An average Druid wouldn't stand such intensity of pure energy, so I assume he had an encounter with Haggar”  
“Who's that?”, Matt slumps down next to Kihe.  
“She is to the Druids what Zarkon is to the soldiers, and she works passionately for him”, he groans.  
Kihe falls back onto the mattress, one arm draped over his aching eyes. “She managed to keep the wound alive, what means it burned and cut his flesh further even without her claws slicing him. That's only possible if she can attach her deconstructive energy on him, which in turn costs constantly a greater amount of energy. I can only think of Haggar and a few others, me included, to be able to perform such a thing. But I've got this gut feeling it has been Haggar...”  
Matt watches Kihe's chest rise and fall, his hair is dishevelled and tousled. His skin is pale, for what he can tell. His ears are bend backwards, his lips ripped from his chewing on them.  
“You absorbed it, didn't you”, it didn't sound like a question.  
“Yeah, no other way around it”, Kihe exhales exhausted.

Matt looks around the room. Old carvings in the walls, the bed made of dirt. It's fascinating, really. There is this kind of earth that is strong enough to shatter metal on Tror, and then there is this fluffy earth, almost as squashy as cotton wool. The pillows are filled with it, as well as the blankets. There is a cupboard and a wardrobe as well, but they don't use them, never had the need to. No windows, no lamps, no light. Light would come with the night, the days are dark underground.

“You okay?”, Matt breathes into the silence. It's a weird silence, underground. It's never completely soundless, but never really noisy either. It's oppressive.  
“Tired... You?” “Tired, but I bet I can't sleep...”, Matt murmurs in agreement. Kihe huffs a bitter laugh at that, “Yeah, tell me about it!”

“I don't understand what Shiro's been talking about and it won't stop bothering me”, Matt broods over Shiro's words, “I still have to comprehend the fact he isn't dead... You remember the friend I told you about?” “The one saving your life?”, Kihe glances up from under his arm, “He got himself the nickname 'Champion' for defeating Myzaxe...”  
He watches Matt, who stares stressed into anything and nothing, trying to bring his languid mind to decipher this riddle, “He mentioned my sister”  
Kihe's mood darkens, “'Voltron' is the most powerful weapon in the whole universe according to legends and myths, designed thousands of years ago to protect the universe from whatever evil forces threatens it. A 'Paladin' pilots one of it's five parts, and thereby is a 'Defender' of the universe”, he sits up slowly, scowling into the same void Matt had stared into, “Given the current situation, 'Voltron' is made of five robotic lions, and your friend as well as your sister seem to pilot one of those. I never believed in it's tale, but it appears the Galra now have found themselves a worthy opponent... Now able to sleep?”  
Matt still looks puzzled, the equation doesn't make sense to him. His sister is supposed to be home, he believed Shiro dead, and Kihe might be a Galra, half Galra in fact, but he is by no means an evil person. He frowns at Kihe, “I still don't understand everything, but.” “But?” “But I don't have to understand everything yet, right?”, he breathes out a deep, drained sigh, “Let's just try to nap and figure things out when Shiro wakes up...”  
Kihe inspects Matt thoroughly. He is in no better condition than himself, hair uncombed, eyes unsettled, hands still trembling. His nerves are on edge, he hasn't recovered from the panic attack. He is shaken. But so is Kihe.  
“Yeah...”, he gives in to Matt's suggestion. Maybe he's right, maybe one doesn't always has to understand everything going on.

They have to share, with Shiro occupying Matt's bed, but as it appears, a shared bed brings a shared sleep with it, and it appears it's the same with sleep as it's with happiness and grief. It appears a shared sleep is more pleasant, soothing and bearable than they could've imagined.  
  


 

 

It is in the middle of the night when Kihe wakes up. He wakes up. Just like that. The walls, the floor, the ceiling still faintly glowing, a warm earthy mix of brown and orange engulfing them completely. The light ceases faintly, returns slowly, as if breathing. He crooks his neck a little towards the back of Matt's head. A golden shimmer waves itself through Matt's still tousled hair. It grew a bit since they first met. Kihe listens to Matt's lungs softly pulling in air, softly pushing it out, his heart steadily pumping blood.  
Kihe thinks of it as beautiful, gorgeous even. Sure, Matt is too, but right now Kihe marvels at the life within Matt and the life he radiates. At the life within this planet. At how alive he himself feels. His heart aches, a gasp seals his lungs and tears sting in his eyes.  
He sneaks out of bed with careful stealth, he won't shatter Matt's rare sleep with some noisy clatter.

He finds himself at the entrance to Matt's room. He doesn't know if it is because of the dim light, or if Shiro's skin really looks that transparent. A tall man, buff, distinctive features. He seems strong, both mentally and physically. A large scar across his pretty face. But Kihe can see more than the obvious. He can sense the pain and horror hidden in this man's right arm, can sense his kind and warmhearted nature. He can smell the scent of one that leads and shoulders responsibility, that cares for those dear to him. He can see the other is in inner turmoil and suffers from fear, Kihe is well acquainted with the demons haunting Shiro. He contemplates shifting into his human form, but steps closer as a Galra. The Champion isn't a creature to be treated with kid gloves.  
Kihe begins checking on his wound, on his overall condition.  
Humans are a scary species. Kihe knows exactly what this one has accomplished, though he does not look like a bloodthirsty predator in any way. He knows Matt's mind is made of steel, but Shiro's mind is not, it's Shiro's heart that can't be defeated. He wonders if every human has this kind of spirit to them as Shiro and Matt have. He wonders if he as well has inherited some of this spirit, from his mother he doesn't know, or if it has something to do with how they're raised, and he isn't actually a human, not by heart.

“You're with Matt”  
Kihe cringes, startled at Shiro's raspy words. He locks eyes with him, stares deep, as does Shiro.  
Kihe nods and resumes his work, “Helped him escape the ship...or he helped me, depends on how you look at it”  
Shiro hums in response. He watches Kihe with wary eyes, shudders when the other touches his sore skin. “It'll take a few weeks to heal”, noticing Shiro's raised eyebrow Kihe explains, “Time ticks faster on this planet”  
The silence between them is heavy and uncomfortable, tension almost tangible in the air. Shiro is on defence, Kihe tries his best to gain his trust by asking, “You mentioned missed teammates? We could help looking for them. Matt and I have a ship, and we can work on yours too, if you want”  
It has the opposite effect, Shiro's gaze is full of hostility and distrust. Kihe huffs. “Maybe you want to talk with Matt about it? You know, you don't have to like me or something, don't have anything to do with me, but I'm still here”  
Those words seem to work, Shiro shakes his head, “That's not... I don't have any... pretty experiences with Galra”, he shows his prosthesis for emphasis, “But you're with Matt, so...”  
He averts his eyes, “You will not lay your hands on Black, though”  
Kihe smiles, “'m fine with that”, then he stands up, relieved his previous worries turned out unfounded, they didn't claw each other's eyes out. “You wanna look after your ship?”

 

Kihe observes Shiro patting and quietly talking with the huge cat space ship as if it would live. It's entrancing in some weird way, with how much affection he treats it. He turns to Tani, inspects it wondering if it is okay that he doesn't treat their ship in such manner.  
He jolts when a loud rumble echoes within the garage, so low and deep it echoes through his bones. Shiro chuckles and tells Black she's a brave lady.  
“Did your ship just purr”, Matt states as he enters the garage. Shiro watches Matt slowly approaching, then nods, “Well, she _is_ a lion after all...”  
They both look at each other with words on their tongue which itch and urge to be spoken, but they just stare. Kihe actually feels uncomfortable to interrupt, but he feels more uncomfortable being left out, so he mumbles, “Technically lions aren't able to purr...”  
Two pairs of eyes are set on him, question marks written all over the two human faces.  
“Only the smaller cats have the apparatus needed to purr. It is a connected linkage of bones running from the back of the tongue up to the base of the skull, the purring sound arises when the larynx is vibrated, which sets the twig-like hyoid bones to resonating. In big cats a length of tough cartilage runs up the hyoid bones to the skull, which prevents purring, but also gives the larynx enough flexibility to produce a full-throated roar, although among the 'roaring cats' only the lion roars habitually, the other are more apt to snarl, yowl, hiss, spit, grunt or cough...”  
Matt's jaw drops, “Just... how the hell do you know this shit? And _why?_ ” Shiro looks just as incredulous as Matt. Kihe fumbles with his hands, stammers out an explanation, “I, uh, read that in a book? From... A book of my father's, he has a handful from earth. It was, uh, it was about cats in general, because...”, Kihe slightly blushes sheepishly, “Be-because the Galra have some similarity with cats... Like, for example, I technically would be able to- I mean, I can purr...”  
  


Shiro sees a bashful Galra, a self-conscious Galra. He hears Matt's hearty laugh, sees him in a friendly banter with a Galra _-aww your cute... c'mon, purr for me?-_ and sees a Galra letting himself be jokingly punched in the shoulder, with a faint magenta blush on his cheeks. He feels a little guilty, but only a little. Kihe still is a Galra.  
  


The ice, though, broke with their bonding over Black, if Altean lions could purr, if a robot could purr, if that all even matters, why are they discussing the anatomy of felines again?  
Shiro explained Black has a soul on her own, or something akin, and that she is very much alive. There needed to be some fixing, but nothing was fatally damaged, so he could pilot her, is what she had told him through their connection. They didn't talk about the Galra or their imprisonment or about Voltron, Matt didn't bring up Shiro's right arm, Shiro didn't question why Matt had snapped, Kihe didn't mention his human origin, Shiro didn't ask for the reason behind Kihe's mindset against Zarkon and his empire. Things would be just as they are, and as Matt has stated towards Kihe, there was no need to understand in order to accept. It was easier that way, for all of them.

 

 


	6. See What I've Become

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: description of an open fracture at the beginning, it's not very detailed but please be careful while reading if you feel uneasy about it
> 
> I'm not good at writing Allura, sorry :/

There is not much blood. Just barely a trickle, the bone sticks out a few inches, had cut through flesh with one sharp, but clear, tearing rip. Had cut through Hunk's armour. The leg bends outwards in such a bizarre angle, it's sickening to look at it. Keith can't remember ever feeling so nauseous. Helm cracked beyond hope and abandoned to his side, his head rests on Hunk's broad shoulder, their hands clutch each other's tightly. Hunk had managed to crawl out of his lion, but hadn't moved since. Keith doesn't know what to do, mind in a state of shock.

Yellow lies a few metres away, on her back. On top of her Red, like she cradled the smaller lion protectively, what she actually really does. Red still isn't functioning after her fight against Zarkon himself, and Yellow along with her Paladin decided to cushion their crash into a moon. The wormhole had spit them out just perfectly to hit it and with such force, they couldn't avoid the impact, with their minds calm and steady or panicking and not thinking clearly, that hadn't even mattered.

They hide in one of the many caves of this moon, but otherwise they are displayed like on a silver plate for the Galra to find them. Keith somehow knows they don't have much time. He nuzzles into Hunk's neck, trying to figure out their options, what they could do and what they should do. But honestly? The only thing on his mind is Hunk, he can't focus on anything else longer than two seconds until his train of thoughts rushes back to the Yellow Paladin.

Hunk is in pain and although he isn't showing it much, Keith can sense it. He wants so desperately to make Hunk's suffering stop, he wants to spare Hunk – gentle, kind and caring Hunk – this cruel agony. It is not fair, Hunk doesn't deserve to be shattered and broken and tossed around, and Keith would shoulder all of Hunk's injuries without hesitation, if he only _could_. But all he can do is hold his hand and whisper breathes of soothing words. It is tormenting him, his inability to help Hunk.  
Hunk on the other hand strokes the back of Keith's hand with his thumb, rests his head on his black tousled hair, whispers back just as comfortingly. He is calm, yes he is hurt and yes it is a deafening pain, paralysing his body, but not his mind. Keith won't listen to his soft words. Hunk worries Keith isn't only freaking out, but loses his sanity, frantically repeating his murmurs, his whole body shaking so slightly, eyes unfocused and clouded.  
  


They are alone for the longest time, until suddenly not anymore. There they finally are, the Galra. Small fighters at first, so they can't take the lions immediately, but they could very well attack the two hiding paladins.

Keith perks up at the sound of laser blasters shooting in their vague direction. They're under attack. Hunk is injured badly, a broken leg and an open wound, punctured lung, bruises all over his body, a concussion. Hunk is injured badly and they're under attack. He will have to fight to protect.  
“Keith”, Hunk hisses through clenched teeth, a new wave of pain exploding inside him by doing so, “Don- Don't go out there!” Keith doesn't look at him, fixes the drones, landing on the moon and coming their direction, with sharp eyes.  
“K-keith, please...”, Hunk breathes heavily, fogging the inside of his helm, “Not alone”  
If Keith runs out there without a plan, as he tends to do when trouble and danger await him, the Galra will slaughter him within seconds. Hunk knows their situation is without hope, there is no way out for them, he knows he is dying. But hell no, he won't just watch his friend storm out into a waiting doom to kill himself in front of his eyes! Keith though seems to still not listen to his words.  
  


Keith's vision focuses, clears. All the huddled thoughts wash out, all the uncertainty, all the helplessness, panic, everything besides Hunk and the drones, there are only those two things left in his mind. Hunk and the drones. He looks back at the Yellow Paladin, he can see his fear, his anxiety, he can smell it. Can taste Hunk's copper blood on the back of his tongue. He gives him a quick peck on the forehead, cold glass to his lips. “I'm here for you, Hunk”, he susurrates tenderly but strongly, “I'll protect you... I won't let them hurt you... Trust me”  
Hunk closes his eyes, sucks in a shuddering breath, pain flicking over his features again. He tries to stay calm, to concentrate on the important things, to not let his mind get swept away in panic and fear and shock. He looks at Keith, sees one yellow eye, purple blotches on his skin, oddly formed ears. He sees the little reassuring smile.  
“I trust you, it's just... I also worry... I care about you...”  
Keith pecks him again, then he leaves.

When Keith steps out into the open, he doesn't know how to name the strong feelings growing inside him. It feels like bravery, it feels like determination, it feels like love, it feels like devotion, it feels like wrath, it feels like anticipation and adrenaline, it feels like a feral growl. He doesn't know what it is inside him that awakens, but he knows he will let it spread over himself. His instinct tells him it is okay, it is needed. And he knows he can rely on his instincts. He inhales, focuses once again, until all he knows is Hunk, his friend, part of his family behind him, and drones in front of him. Those beloved and those trying to get to them separated by himself. He only knows they won't get past.

He walks towards the enemies, towards the whirling storm of wild and raw emotions thundering inside him. There is a beast roaring within himself, demanding to be freed. When he looks back, he sees Hunk, for whom there is nothing left, and knows there is nothing left for himself, nothing left of what he wouldn't do for Hunk. So he steps into the arising storm, unchains the beast, welcomes it and merges with it. He slashes down the first drone approaching. He moves fast and agile, he destroys the drones with every swing of his bayard blade, be it a swing forward or backwards, every movement gives momentum to the next and with every movement falls an enemy. He twists around and his feet join his sword, kicking while he strikes and whacks drone after drone. Keith dances through them with deadly grace and inhuman speed, leaving desolation behind. They won't get past.  
The last of the drones falls, and Keith leaps high, the light gravity of this moon not hindering him so he can catapult himself to a fighter ship, and drives his blade through it and hurls it to the ground, where it crashes with an explosion. He picks them out of the sky, shatters them mercilessly, while Hunk is left to watch the nasty massacre with pure horror.  
  


 

 

“Down there!”, Matt yells and Kihe yanks Tani around to where Matt points out. A slowly decreasing swarm of Galra fighters comes into view. They dive down and then, when they have a hold of the situation, they need a few seconds to take it in. There is a Galra going berserk against Galra. “He protects that cave”, Kihe realises.  
And as soon as they land in front of it's entrance and hurry inside, Kihe understands. His own instincts kick in immediately, at the sight of the injured Paladin, the smell of terror and dread, the metallic scent of blood, and danger lurking outside. The Galra outside fights to protect. And so will Kihe.  
“We take him with us”, he tells Matt with a stern voice. Matt, already by the other human's side, nods and shoulders one of his arms. Kihe makes haste to support him from the other side, they guide the limping man into Tani.  
“Keith...”, his breath rattles with the blood gurgling in his lung, “Don' leave 'm...”  
“We will not”, Kihe confirms. “Shiro”, he calls into his communicator, “We will take the Yellow Paladin out of this, don't leave Keith behind”, with that, Kihe lunges Tani out and away from the battlefield.  
  


“Keith?”, Shiro wonders back at Kihe, but spots the Red Paladin in a crowd of dead drones and fighters before he gets an answer. He is about to be glad, his smile dies though, shattered like the drones, when he recognises a Galra in Keith's red armour.  
“Holy crow! Shiro is that you?!”, a voice blares in his ears, sounding suspiciously like Lance, “Did you catch Hunk's coordinates too? Where is he?”  
“Hunk's safe...”, Shiro looks to his right, where Blue had appeared out of nowhere, “But Keith is...”  
“Keith's here? Oh- I see him he's kicking Galra butt”, Lance chirps and dives down, picking up Keith with Blue's muzzle. He instantly gets shoot by fighters. “We need to get outta here, order from the Princess. Just grabbing 'em, no fighting”, Lance informs after he froze over the attackers, “Can you give me a hand getting Red and Yellow?”  
Shiro, actually the leader of his team, follows Lance's words with a sigh of relieve. Lance surprised him, but that is nothing compared to the shock of seeing Keith. He doesn't want to think about it, doesn't know what he would've done without the saving suggestions. He had just managed to handle two or three nerve wrecking experiences and a break down within the recent past, he doesn't know if he could stand another one. Out of sight, out of mind, for now.  
“The Princess? So the castle is nearby?”, Shiro asks, following Lance's lead towards the crashed lions. “Yup”, Lance manoeuvres Blue so she could hold Red in her claws. “Kihe!”, Shiro calls out while hoisting Yellow, “Did you catch that? Bring Hunk back to the castle and into a healing pod as soon as possible, Lance and I will bring Keith and the lions”  
He doesn't get a vocal reply, but he sees Tani darting out of it's cover and rushing to the castle hovering in the sky.  
  


 

 

It all happens really, really absurdly fast. One moment Lance talks on and on about Hunk on the screens, next he mentions Keith and suddenly Shiro is back on line and a foreign ship lands in the castle's hangar.  
“Who are they?”, Allura asks demandingly.  
“Later!”, Shiro calls out a little stressed. She can hear him being under attack.  
“Where's Hunk?!”, yells Keith from within Blue, voice growling and rugged and winded.  
“On the way into a healing pod”, answers Coran, who immediately bolts to get the Yellow Paladin into the infirmary.  
“We're back!”, Lance shrieks, “Wormhole! Wormhole!”  
All chaos inside her head and inside the ship pushing aside, Allura opens their escape route and they jump several galaxies away.  
  


She lets out a gasps relieved, then hurries to the hangar. She had expected to find a loud mess of voices, but the silence awaiting her screams louder than any turmoil could have. She freezes, and stares at the scene unfolding. A Galra glares down another Galra. One of them clings onto Hunk, the one in red armour. Lance is bleeding, a huge gaping wound on his arm. Someone looking like Pidge holds back an appalled Shiro, and Coran just watches from the side, like her. She gulps, then addresses him, “Coran... what is going on?”  
It is not Coran who responds though, and the answer is not to her question nor towards her. “You must let him get that man to safety”, Kihe says, gaze fixed on Keith, before raising his arms in surrender and baring his throat submissively.  
Keith snarls and towers over Hunk. “Plea-”, Hunk coughs blood, but smiles weakly at Keith nevertheless. Seeming to contemplate over something, Keith's expression goes blank again. He glances at Coran.  
And Coran steps aside. He doesn't understand what's going on either, but as long as Hunk gets into a pod in time they could figure everything else out then. He never had seen any living being move with such enormous speed like Keith does in the very moment his way is clear, Hunk safe in his arms.

 

 


	7. Believe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't fashion Keith as a drama queen and I don't like Allura and I do love Lance  
> But man, it's gonna be so much fun from here on, hehe ^^

The Princess glares distrustingly at Kihe. He seems exhausted, but not in the least surprised by the Altean's wary and harsh behaviour. Matt stands beside him, watches him with a calculating gaze.  
Shiro's sigh is heavy, he is exhausted too. “Princess, this is Matt Holt, Pidge's brother. And this is Kihe, who helped him escape the Galra”, he explains, “They found me near the planet Tror, and we can trust them”, he addresses Allura's cold attitude. “We can not”, Allura objects energetically, “trust a Galra! It could be a trap, an ambush, how are we supposed to know?” “The Galra wouldn't let me escape them a second time. He is not with them”, Shiro argues back. Allura huffs and shoots a scowl towards Kihe, “The Galra are malicious creatures, they can not be trusted. He most likely will betray your faith in him, he could even destroy Team Voltron! I am not going to take this risk, I won't allow him to stay on this ship”  
Kihe doesn't look bothered by the princess' words, his thoughts are elsewhere. Still inspecting him Matt slowly puts the puzzle pieces together, as well not impressed by Allura's outburst. “Kihe”, he says with a defeated grin, interrupting Shiro's comeback at Allura, “Welcome to the club...”  
Life isn't fair, alright. Pretty sure life has a foul sense of humour as well, though. They both believed their siblings safe and sound on earth. Kihe laughs bitterly, “Thanks, I guess...” They share a glimpse, a smile, then Kihe starts trudging towards where Keith had disappeared with Hunk.  
“I'm half, if that helps you in any way”, he glances at Allura as he passes her, “Just half a trust-unworthy, evil asshole. The other half is human” Kihe drags himself through the ship's hallways, following the lingering scent of blood. Matt is right on his heels, the others follow silently as well. Allura is still upset about Kihe, but also curious about the meaning of that last comment. And she craves for answers concerning Keith. A very purple, very Galra looking Keith. The image of sharp teeth and yellow eyes and a low hiss burning in the back of her mind, imprinted. She may bear a reasonable grudge against the Galra, she hates them justifiably. But that does not mean she doesn't care for her Red Paladin. Who knows what the Galra had done to him.  
  


Keith stands wordless in front of Hunks pod. He looks down at his hand, his blood smeared, purple, clawed hand. His ears twitch at the sound of approaching footsteps. He turns around, slowly. He sees Shiro, who seems tired and confused. Allura looks infuriated and Coran hides himself behind her intimidating presence. He concentrates on something else, though. He sees Lance, clutching his injured arm, where Keith had scratched him. It must hurt, the burning sensation of cut skin. His gaze flickers back and forth between Lance and the other Galra. All eyes are on him, some worried, some cautious. He flinches.  
“What. Is going on”, he demands to know, staring at Kihe.  
“You are a halfbreed”  
“Yeah, I figured”, Keith snarls. “I'm not dumb and there where many, many signs. Besides... look at me now, it couldn't get more obvious. It explains one thing or another, but that is _not_ what I meant”, he inhales, trying to control his emotions, his panic, “I would never hurt Lance”  
He trembles, looks at Lance's blood on his hand again, “I wouldn't. But I did. What happens to me? First with Hunk, now Lance... I-I don't know, it feels like...”  
“It feels like a monster”, Kihe finishes his sentence and continues on, “A monster inside you that you thought could help protect the Yellow Paladin, but which you couldn't control afterwards. Am I right?” Keith nods hesitantly. He doesn't want to admit he was out of control, but that is what had happened, he lost control. “And now you feel the same urge towards the one you accidentally injured. You want to take care of him” Keith looks at the foreign Galra. His words sting in his chest at how accurately they describe his feelings. His strange and weird need to tend to Lance's wound. He nods again. “Then go fetch some bandages from somewhere and patch him up”  
But Keith shakes his head, forces a “Why” through his lips. He _wants_ to do just what Kihe told him to do, he _needs_ to.  
Kihe has patience with him, steps a little closer, “Because it is your duty to protect your pack”, he chuckles at Keith's puzzled look, “You are an omega, silly. That's part of your instincts, like a sixth sense, a second nature! Though it's just your second gender...”  
With epiphany on his face Keith lets out a little “...oh”, and stares at his hand again, as if everything makes sense now. But if it does, then he is the only one getting to understand Kihe's words, the rest of them still are clueless.  
“Well”, they hear a sharp inhale, “It's been a long day, a lot to process”, Lance's voice is a little shaken, though he tries to hide it with a flashing grin he casts towards Keith. “I take care of that little scratch, and then I go get a good, long beauty sleep. Talking afterwards. Sounds cool?”  
  


 

 

So a halfbreed, huh? As Keith had said, that explains some things. Things of his past, but also why Red were with the Galra, the strange words from Zarkon... Keith had a hunch he wasn't all that normal. He is not surprised, he just got the confirmation of what he feared could be the truth.  
He sits down in one of the corridors he had wandered aimlessly, a layer of glass between him in front of the window and endless space behind it. He felt guilty for not understanding Lance's homesickness, for not understanding Hunk's wish to return to earth... But he gets it now, he couldn't have understand them. Part of him never was at home in his shack in the desert, part of him just didn't belong to earth. Where does he belong to, then? Where would he be supposed to go? He never had a real home, so what does he know...  
Who is he, after all? He knows he is no good, and so far, what good did even happen to him? Is there even something good inside him? He always got told what his flaws are, in his character, in his body... He is hotheaded and impulsive, grumpy and not sociable. He doesn't think of himself as handsome, an indifferent feeling had settled in his chest whenever he looked in a mirror, as if he would look at a stranger's face. Lance always makes fun of his hair, seems annoyed by his presence in general. So seriously, what good does he have? All he does excel in are combat skills, fighting, violence... yeah, him being half Galra fits well enough.  
He breathes in and gulps. Yeah, it makes sense. But that doesn't mean it's easy. He had noticed the dull sliver of something dark in Shiro's eyes, a shard of his shattered memories, that resurfaced when he had looked at him. Shiro had been there for him like no one else, the brother he never had. Oh well, the brother he couldn't have anymore, not with him resembling one of Shiro's nightmares. The beat is heavy in Keith's empty chest, there is nothing left, Shiro was the only one bothering with making Keith feel worth something.  
He breathes in again, breathing in the faint scent of blood. He hadn't washed it off his hand yet. He thinks about Lance, thinks about Hunk. He did go out there, did fight. He really did. He never felt so scared of loosing a fight before.  
 _Because it is your duty to protect your pack. You are an omega, silly. That's part of your instincts._  
Keith smiles silently. He can't believe it... So there _is_ something good inside him! Even if it should only be just one good thing... He is no good, but his heart beats, his lungs breathe, and if that's what he is, so be it. Protecting his friends, that's not that bad of a personality facet, really.  
  


 

 

Everyone is nervous and edgy. But as long as Keith isn't present Kihe refuses to answer any questions thrown at him. While Allura grows more and more impatient, Shiro is grateful for the chance to calm down and collect himself. Coran had helped Lance to bandage his arm, now he fiddles with his moustache. Lance didn't go get his beauty sleep as he had said he would, but seriously, who could think of sleeping in that situation? Rather than that, he thinks about the problem at hand, and how exactly he wants to handle it.  
  


“So... I'm part Galra”  
Keith's words slice through the awkwardly tense silence. He steps into the lounge. Shiro, Matt and the other Galra sit on the round couch, Allura and Coran stay on the opposite side of the room, and Lance lies on the floor in the middle, surrounded by the couch instead of making himself comfortable on it. Kihe finally speaks up, “Yes”  
“So you want to tell us that you and Keith are halfbreeds?”, Allura huffs, “How can I believe your words? For what I know, you could have _made_ Keith Galra!” The air is thick and it's hard to breathe. No one feels well being around, and Keith feels guilty once again, for being the reason to this negative atmosphere between them. He didn't choose to be what he is, though, and he feels disturbed as well, just as his teammates. After all, he feels the same unsettling feeling of intrusion, there suddenly _is_ a Galra within the team.  
Kihe shakes his head, and then, just like that, shifts into his human form. “I always wished to meet my twin one day...”, his voice is a soft whisper, turning into a soft laughter.  
  


Lance glances around. Everyone is shocked, eyes wide and unbelieving. A Galra just turned human. He looks at Keith, who at some point must have done that too, he had stepped into the room as his usual self, at least regarding his looks. Everyone acts like it's a big deal. He doesn't want to, he then decides, he just doesn't want to. How to handle the problem at hand? The problem at hand isn't Keith turning Galra and getting himself a twin. The problem is that everyone _acts_ like it's a problem. When really, it is not. Someone gotta have faith in the good things, Lance likes to make himself believe.  
  


“You're now a bat-cat, so what?”, Lance sits up and raises one eyebrow, a mischievous grin plasters itself on his lips, “Orrrr... maybe you're a bad cat, as in, not a good kitty?” His voice drops lower a view octaves for the last two words. Keith guesses it is supposed to sound sexy, but it doesn't. It sounds stupid. He is utterly irritated. “Lance. Are you hitting on me with a kink reference”, he deadpans and half questions, half states. Lance laughs his obnoxiously loud laugh, then jumps to his feet and lazily hops over the couch, he catches Keith in a firm hug.  
“Seriously though, no one hates you”, Lance sounds honest and kind, for once serious and not mocking, “It's just... hard fur us too, okay? Give us some time. It's not easy to put up with all that without knowing any details... And it sucks, but!”, he tightens his embrace to hush Keith's upcoming protest, “...But you didn't know yourself so... it must suck for you the most...”  
Those are understanding words, consoling words, words of sympathy. Words of you're-not-alone and we'll-manage. It sounds so simple when Lance says them. Keith hides his face in Lance's shoulder and whispers a weak “Thanks”  
“Aww don't cry, you haven't fallen for me now, have you...”, and there the moment shatters, smug Lance is back. But two could play that game, with Keith's mood lifted again, he jokes, “Too late I guess...” Lance jumps away at that, not prepared for such a reply.  
“Uh whatever. Can you turn into a kitty for me too?”, he asks curiously.  
Keith smirks sheepishly, “I don't knyow, I can't control it yet”  
“Did- did you just-?”  
“Yeah I really did, didn't I...”, Keith confirms, still smiling but already questioning his sanity.  
“Holy crow! I can't believe it! Galra Keith is my favourite Keith!”  
Keith coughs, embarrassed by Lance's open excitement. He still feels uncomfortable, a little bit, when thinking about his Galra hand, fingertips covered in blood. “Why would you even want to see me in my Galra form again?”  
“Huh? Because it's awesome?”, Lance answers with childish simplicity.  
Now it's Keith's turn to not believe his own ears, “I'm half Galra and you're calling that awesome?”  
“Dude! You can turn purple! And fluffy and you can have fluffy cat ears and soft purple kitty paw pads and woah! Can you purr? Like our lions?”, Lance rambles, then grabs Keith by his shoulders, eyes eager and expectant. Lance loves cats, his own at home, the neighbour's, the ones a few streets away, every cat. Cat's are cool.  
“Apparently lions aren't able to purr”, the Black Paladin throws in from where he had been watching his teammates, smiling a harmless and innocent smile, “But Keith and Kihe sure are”  
Kihe hides his face in his palms with a groan, hot embarrassment and a deep blush covering his ears and creeping down over his face and neck. He remembers all too well. “Shiro. Shiro why”

 

 


	8. Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS: There is some platonic twincest in this chapter... they just kinda kiss? It's like two cats grooming each other, but I can't have these boys slobbering all over their faces (ew), so kissing is my equivalent for that?  
> But if that's a sensitive topic for you please be careful while reading.
> 
> Also a lot of information input, I hope it's not too jejune...
> 
> AND I finally stopped living beneath a rock and got twitter: @HapSkyScribbles  
> There isn't much going on, I first have to get the hang of this, but it'll be fine... hopefully...

Matt laughs and ruffles Kihe's hair, who keeps cursing under his breath, “I should never have told you about that...”

“I find it rather amusing”, Shiro smiles. Lance's excited screech echoes in the room and he shakes Keith by his shoulders even more. “You're awful”, Kihe huffs at the Black Paladin. “And you're cute... Both of you, by the way”, Matt grins and winks at Keith, “Must be the family resemblance”

“Could you knock it off? It's awkward enough already...”, Kihe says and his gaze falls to the floor. “I won't knock it off, sweetheart, 'cause _you_ have some explaining to do and I prefer to have that awkward in a funny way than have it awkward in a gloomy way...”, Matt lectures, “Besides, what's all this bad mood about? We got away from the Galra, got away from Tror, ended up with Shiro's Team, you found your twin and I'm gonna find my sis. Nobody's dead, and the yellow one is gonna be fine too. I don't get why they throw a tantrum like that, it's just like the blue one said: Two twin kitty cats, so what?”

Kihe growls and lunges at Matt with a hiss, “You think it's funny, yes?”, he spits. He has him pinned beneath him, now full Galra again. Ears folded back and eyes narrowed. “I could tear you apart any time”, he emphasises his words with a hand pressing down on Matt's throat, “I am not a harmless-” “You... are...”, Matt whispers with a strained voice. Kihe sees the wild fire crackling in hazel brown eyes, warm and pleasant but also untamed and undefeated. He retreats humbly.

“You... will not hurt me”, Matt doesn't move, just stares up at Kihe straddling him with closed eyes. “I will not, Matt”, he sighs, “You know I can't” “I know. But they do not”  
When Kihe looks at the others, he nods slowly, his eyes rest on Keith.

“We... we are Galra omegas. Normally, an omega is female and normally an omega gets disposed of...”, Kihe trails off, head hanging low, “They are no use to Zarkon, because they act on their instincts and emotions and tend to disobey orders more likely. Omegas form packs, a group of individuals they consider family. They will protect them no matter what, because that's the nature of omegas”, he smiles at Matt in a bittersweet, helpless way, “Our father was the sole member of my pack for a long time... Now, that I failed to protect him and he protected me instead, Matt is the only one I have left...” He shakes his head, as if he would try to shoo away some thoughts, or memories. Then he fixes Keith with his gaze again, “That's why I insisted on you getting Hunk to safety. It... hurts. When an omega fails to protect their pack”, Keith didn't know the pain Kihe speaks of, but he doesn't want to find out, he realises with a cold shiver running through his body, he doesn't want to learn the agony Kihe gulps down and clenches his eyes shut at. Kihe had lost their father.

“So... Hunk is part of... my pack?”, Keith asks, though he already knows the answer. It's... simple.  
“It is called 'pack' because one doesn't have to be related by blood to be part of it. You're male, so you won't give birth, but you form a pack as an omega, and you do so by choosing the ones dear to you”, Kihe smiles and Keith nods, he slowly starts to understand the overall picture of how the Galra race should be socially functioning, if it weren't for Zarkon's reign.  
  


 

 

Kihe is both, very impressed and very terrified at how fast humans can adapt to their surroundings. One day everyone seemed troubled by his presence, shocked by the revelation of Keith being a halfling, and the next thing he knows? They chatter at breakfast, Keith jumps with glee when Shiro invites him to a sparring session on the training deck, Coran starts tinkering on Red and Yellow – he isn't called the 'Coranic' for nothing – while Allura and Matt discuss rescue plans regarding how to find and safe Pidge, and Lance roams around rambling to whoever ends up in his presence, even Hunk isn't spared, though he still rests in a pod. And Kihe? Kihe feels like he is lost. He mentions it at dinner.

“We aren't adapting to the situation”, Shiro explains, “We... well, actually we are avoiding- more like running? …We need time, just as Lance had said, but we can't simply stop functioning for that” Lance hums in agreement, “It's easier doin' something instead of thinking of it too much...” “You and thinking?”, Keith starts the bickering and who is Lance to shy away from that? “Oh shut your quiznak, dropout!” “Can't come up with anything else, cargo pilot?” “Mullet-head” “Now it's my hair again, nothing new...” “Kitty”, Lance says triumphantly and baths in the sight of Keith spluttering at that. Though Keith is endlessly relieved Lance treats him like he had before, it got them back to the original topic.

“Speaking of kittens”, Shiro interrupts with a smile and Kihe groans, “Kihe, maybe you could tell us some more about this second gender thing?” Kihe squints his eyes and puts his spork down. His eyebrows are hunched in contemplative confusion. “You guys really don't know about this?”, he asks. Matt jabs an accusing finger at him, “You! You didn't believe me! I told you so but you just thought I was too stupid to know”, he pouts with a scowl. “Uh... yeah. I mean no! I didn't thought you were stupid... It's just-”, Kihe sighs and apologizes. “Sorry, I just thought your kind must know about second genders because humans seem to have the same gender constellation, just less intense...”, he shakes his head, clears his throat and starts with the explanation, “The Galra race has a first gender, female and male. Females give birth and make sure the pack is safe, regarding nourishment, illness and injuries. Males protect the pack against threads from outside the pack, like rivalries with other packs over territories. Then there are the second genders: omega, alpha and beta. Each gender has a different role in this dynamics. Omegas protect the pack and ensure it's cohesion, alphas are chosen as a mate by an omega and function as the leader of the pack. Beta lack what is needed to protect or lead, but they alone have the flexibility to assist in every possible way. There are only a few omegas and alphas, the majority of the Galra are beta, and this balance is even more extreme within the human race, where really only a few are not beta”  
He blinks deep in thought, “Maybe that is the reason why your kind never noticed it...”  
  


 

 

It is an awful lot of information input, but Keith doesn't complain. It keeps his brain busy, distracts him from the fact that he has a family who didn't abandon him. He doesn't know why he ended up on earth and Kihe in space. But he does know the look Kihe gives him, a look full of hidden longing and shy affection. He had seen that look on others, but it was never directed at himself. It's the look Pidge had when talking about her brother and Matt has when he speaks about his sister. Though there lies something more in Kihe's eyes, something he can't describe, but feel rising in his own chest. It is confusing and irritating, Keith never liked handling feelings. So yes, he welcomes the distraction.  
  


He sits in the lounge, lucky to be alone and able to let his mind wander. Allura doesn't seem all to happy with the course the recent events had taken. She gave Kihe and Matt some old Altean clothes and listened to their story about Tror and it's people, they all had listened to them describing caverns and skies of another world, but Allura had held her distance through all of that. He can't blame her for the cold stares, her silent attitude, but it hurts. Part of the pack, huh... It is weird. He wants to think that he didn't just turn Galra, but inside himself that's just what had happened. He suddenly recognises emotions and character traits clearly connected to his Galra part. Like the deep caring for his friends, or the very instinctive way of behaviour. Then again, he always had acted intuitively and cherished the few friends he had made, it's part of what makes Keith who he is. It doesn't matter where it originates from, because everything sums up into that person called Keith. But he also does recognise some new feelings, he just can't name them yet.  
  


Keith hears the soft swoosh of the door opening and closing, he looks up to Kihe. He lingers at the entrance, nervously shifting from one foot to the other. “Uhm... Hi...”, he mutters.

“Hi”, Keith responses, but it doesn't calm Kihe down. He tries to reassure him with a smile. They hadn't had a chance to talk in private, and while Keith got some answers to his questions, Kihe didn't. Keith pats on the couch to his right, and although Kihe sits down next to him he doesn't stop fidgeting around.

“I...”, Kihe starts with a whisper. His voice is low and wobbly, he gulps and averts his gaze, “I wanted to ask you... Wha- what do you, uh...”, he sighs and starts over, “I always wished to meet my twin one day...” Keith looks at him, a small smirk cracking into the corner of his lips, “You said so... Well... here I am?”, he gulps down a nervous chuckle, “I never knew I had a brother. Shiro is like a brother to me, but...”

Keith's hand tremble in his lap, he clenches them into fists to stop the shaking. He was an orphan for so long, he had imagined, had fantasized about having a family so often. And now? With the reality confronting him with the realness of his little childish wish? He feels excitement and bliss exploding, but also blank panic jolting his mind. “Everyone has families, right? Even me...”, he aspirates and shoots a pleading look at Kihe.

Kihe is trembling as well, voice as much a quiet breath of air as Keith's, “I wanted to ask you... to be mine...”, he whispers, “Be my brother. Be with me”

Keith's heartbeat speeds up, spreading warmth through his body, as it would be a little sun that's pounding in his chest. His eyes oh so faintly light up, and he oh so faintly nods.  
  


Kihe straddles him, makes himself comfortable in his lap, hands on his shoulders, squeezing tenderly. He blinks at him a few times, and slowly leans towards him until their foreheads touch. Kihe's yellow eyes never leave Keith's mauve ones. Kihe gives him time, every time he needs to properly process everything. Keith sees how his twin's hair is not as fluffy as his own, not as short, not cut in any way, but nevertheless being a mess he should tame with a hair tie. He sees the smooth fur on Kihe's face, and the small scars scattered over his cheeks, his nose, lips. He sees those lips move slightly closer, Kihe slowly bends his head. Keith has enough time to taste his brother's scent, tangled up with that of old clothes and Keith's shampoo. His nostrils recognise the smell of earthy dust and airy clouds, he assumes the scent of Tror's caverns along with that of it's skies still clings to Kihe's body. He can feel the calming brush of Kihe's thumb over his shoulder, the grounding weight on his thighs. He can feel lips tentatively ghost over his own, leaving the mild sensation of a peck's faint push behind. His mauve eyes scoot back to Kihe's yellow ones.

His hands, resting next to him without motion until now, press against Kihe's chest, pushing him back a little. “You're my brother”, he mumbles.

He meant it as kind of a reason to why they shouldn't be doing such things like kissing, but somehow, he realises, it is every reason to do so as well. His human mind tries to negotiate with his Galra instinct, one does not just kiss their brother, but then... When he looks in his twin's eyes full of love and affection and adoration, his fingertips reassuringly and caringly tracing over his neck, lips curled into a little smile of fondness, he looks just as lovestruck as Keith feels. He leans into their second kiss, and moves his lips tenderly together with Kihe's.

It's chaste and soft and warm. At some point he shifts into his Galra form as well, and somehow he even starts purring. He pushes Kihe away again, startled by the sound still vibrating in his chest.

It is when Kihe catches up to his irritated thoughts, when he chuckles amused at him and starts to purr too, it is then when it really, finally, ultimately hits him. “You're my brother”

Kihe smiles and closes his eyes, gives him a small nod. Yes. Keith has a brother.

Tears explode, his lips tremble and he chokes out a shaking cry, rushes forward and presses his face against Kihe's, rubs his nose against Kihe's cheek. He desperately catches his lips, licks them, caresses Kihe's tongue with his own. His hands clasp onto Kihe's back, his shoulders, tugging him closer, find their way into Kihe's hair, stroke over his ears. Keith slumps into Kihe and screams, his own ears folded back. He snuggles into his chest and sobs. He pecks Kihe's neck and throat, claws at his arms.

And Kihe just lets it happen, lets his brother's emotions wash over him patiently and forgivingly, holding him near. He understands an omega's wish for closeness within the family, a caring bond between their members.

Keith drowns in the storm of his feelings. He loves Kihe, for being his twin, for being with him, being part of his pack, for _being_. He aches because oh how had he longed for the lonely air around him to warm up. Every contact between them burns in his soul, soothes the wild yearning for someone by his side he hadn't realized was there. He melts under Kihe's loving gaze, breathlessly sighs into their kisses. Kihe wipes away his tears.  
  


Then someone screams bloody murder.  
“GAAAAAAAARRRRRRHHHHHH! GUYS! GUUUUUUUUYS!”  
It's Hunk. Pushing his palms into his eyes.  
“THINGS I DO NOT NEED TO SEEEEEEEE!”

 


	9. The Call of Rainfall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this comes with delay... I was seriously stuck :/  
> Good news: it's here now, not beta-ed and a little shorter, but I got to tear my blockade down before it was even up, so I'm happy :)  
> Bad news: updates probably every two weeks for a bit :(
> 
> @HapSkyScribbles

Hunk staggers out of the room, back the way he came. Lance raises his eyebrows quizzically, “Dude, why are you screaming?” Hunk only shakes his head, and covers his eyes again, “Nuh-uh. Nope. I'm already deleting it from my memory. Never saw that” “Saw what Hunk? A purple fluffy ball of fur? That's just Keith... or Kihe”, Lance shrugs and just as he mentions them, Keith comes running after Hunk, an apology already on the tip of his tongue, “Hunk! Oh my god, I'm sorry! That was- I-it's not like what-”, he frantically chants, “I mean it was just- Oh god, Hunk I'm sorry, I-” “Oh hush, buddy, you're fine”, Hunk interrupts Keith and squeezes him into a half armed hug from the side, “Just glad to see you alive and full of energy”, he says and winks. It's okay to love and be loved, Hunk doesn't judge him for that and smiles at him so brightly Keith thinks he might actually melt. Out of embarrassment, because Hunk just caught him making out with his goddamn twin, but also out of embarrassment because of the fact that he now wants to do the same with Hunk and that's even more weird than wanting to smooch Kihe. He will not attack Hunk like he had attacked his brother, no matter how stunning Hunk's very happy, very not pained and very not bloody face is. That much common sense is left within him, thank you. But he does turn his head a little and pecks Hunk on the cheek, “Glad to see you alive, too. You had me worried there”

Lance's eyes go wide at that. That's not the Keith he used to know. Hunk doesn't seem to be surprised though, as he spins to grab Keith by his shoulders and scolds him, “ _You_ had _me_ worried! You super freaky idiot who saved our lives! Turning Galra on me and running into an army! Keith, what the hell? You can't just tell me to trust you and run off like that! Do _not_ do this! Bad Keith!”

Keith smiles at Hunk. He should feel sorry, yes, but he is so relieved Hunk is not dying anymore and accepting about his Galra side, the only feeling he gets his hands on is a very warm, fuzzy and content mix of pride and affection and before he can even stop himself and fucking _think_ before acting on instinct, he already pecks Hunk's lips. Everyone freezes.

Hunk is the first to recover from that, and scolds once more, a bit irritated, “Bro, you can't just make out with your boyfriend and then cheat on him. Please, do _not_ do this, too” “Actually”, Kihe makes his presence known from where he had watched a few steps away, “I'm not his boyfriend and he is not cheating on anyone. That's just normal behaviour? I mean-”, he rises his hands in a defending gesture, before confused outbursts form Hunk and Lance can hit him, “He is omega, and taking care of his pack. That's totally okay, nothing wrong with that” Lance squints his eyes, studying Kihe suspiciously, “So you two kissed, that's why Hunk screamed. Okay, got that. Did you kiss Shiro and Matt, too?”, because he doesn't know how he feels about this new information. But to his relief, Kihe shakes his head, “No I didn't. I know humans do not cuddle and kiss unless they are in a relationship or blood related. I... wanted to, badly, when Matt woke up from nightmares, or when I saw his injuries, his scars...”, Kihe trails off and the expression he wears makes Lance shiver, so heartbroken and helpless and lost. He slowly understands what feeling Kihe tries to explain, it's like wanting to comfort one of his younger siblings, but being at the garrison and unable to hug them tight. That and the peculiar sixth sense cats seem to have, they know exactly when you're feeling down and when they have to come to you and curl up in your lap and purr like an old, rusty car engine on a mission. So when Kihe says apologetically, “It's not in a sexual way, Keith just cares for you, his Galra blood only amplifies that feeling...”, all Lance needs to answer is an accepting, “Okay”

 

Kihe decides to discuss this topic with everyone else, too. While Shiro and Matt once again make fun of him – he is just too cute when bashfully pouting – Allura and Coran politely ask to be spared from their attempts of 'Galra bonding', which he respects and Keith promises to not do anything to them as well. Hunk and Lance aren't bothered by the cuddling part, though the twins are banned from kissing more intensely than a peck to the forehead.

“Does...”, Kihe asks sheepishly, “Does this mean, uh... That I'm allowed to stay?” He is still half Galra, still an intruder. He feels the bonds to them already forming in his heart, would like to become a part of Keith's pack and stay, but... But then, everyone, even Allura, just smiles at him, and only Shiro's words answer his question more sincerely than those smiles, “Welcome home”

 

Hunk finds Lance in a corner of the castle, one of the more isolated places, one of those places people tend to go to when they want to be left alone, or want to be found by the right person. Hunk hopes it's the latter when he sits down next to his friend. “You sure you're okay with that?”, he asks in a low tone. “Hn”, Lance huffs, then sighs and leans into Hunk's side, cheek resting on his broad shoulder. “They're both male after all, and twins”, Hunk adds concerned. “It's not- I don't care about that”, Lance tells him, “Gender or sexuality, no one cares about that much nowadays anyway... especially since we're in space...” Hunk lays his arm around Lance and squeezes him tight. “Then this is about Shiro's words”, he states, because he has a feeling about what's upsetting Lance, he isn't his best bro for nothing. And if it's not his bi ass crushing on a beautiful being, then it's about his family. Hunk knows Lance, and Lance knows Hunk does so. If it is safe to ramble about his feelings and thoughts and worries, then it's with Hunk.

“I always thought home is at home, y'know... But Shiro's right, somehow home is... It's more than a place. I-I can't, I... Hunk, I'm scared- scared that I'm coming home – if we ever get home again – and when I'm coming home, I don't feel at home anymore. That my family has gotten foreign to me. Because home? It's so far away... Not only physically. I don't think Shiro would feel at home on earth. Keith wouldn't either. And... Kihe is kinda right? About this pack thing, we are like family, aren't we... And Shiro's right too, the castle is home. It's just... weird, to be at home in more than one place, more than with one family... I never realised it, but maybe...maybe...”

Lance stares into the air, his face isn't scrunched up with homesickness, or with grief or regret. He never finishes his thought, and his whispered 'maybe' carries on and on, such a little word carrying so many possibilities and chances.

 

So by chance, Lance finds a sleeping Kihe contently curled up in Matt's lap, Matt glaring at everyone who dares to say a word. And Matt doesn't mind the drool on his chest, or the cramps when he had been sitting in one position too long. He rakes his fingers through Kihe's bangs, trying to comb them a little. There is the possibility that Keith may show up purple and fuzzy for breakfast, or that Lance rans into Keith and Kihe cuddling and purring, or that he trips over Kihe, who likes to randomly fall asleep in the most impossible places. Perhaps Hunk starts petting the twins, ruffling their heads or doting on their ears. Maybe Shiro starts training with Kihe, in order to get better at handling his flashbacks, and Kihe is worried to no end and nearly turns into a mother hen when Shiro collapsed the first time, never leaving his side. Allura might apologetically hand Kihe more Altean clothes, admitting it looks weird to see a Galra in those, but smiling slightly nevertheless. Keith starts to feel more comfortable about his need of contact, sits close to Hunk when he tinkers on the lions, or makes himself at home on both Kihe and Shiro at the same time, creating a big pile of fur and a helplessly trapped Shiro. Once Lance even found Keith napping with his head pillowed on Matt's stomach, with Matt fast asleep as well. Keith smiles more often. Seems to enjoy being with them.

So when Kihe asks if it's okay to hold hands, Lance is fine with that. Lance likes holding hands, or spooning in bed, or braiding Kihe's hair. Lance likes Kihe, likes how their team turns into more than just a team. Matt and Hunk create upgrades for Tani, Keith learns how to shift, Kihe and Allura discuss attempts of taking down Zarkon, Keith urges Kihe to bond with Red and Kihe gets nearly stomped on, Shiro gets more and more childish with Matt around, two friends snickering behind their hands when planning pranks, Lance likes that. He likes being part of a family, and accepts the possibility he might never return to earth solemnly and with a little bitter sweet pang in his chest. He might not come back home, because maybe, he already is.

 

Something is not completely right, though, and everyone is very aware of Pidge's absence. Especially Matt, and even Kihe, who never met Pidge, feels the incompleteness of his pack. Someone is missing, Pidge is missing.

Pidge is clever, she would have found a way to contact them, if not returning on her own. But that would only be possible if Green would be with her, so they have to assume Green was taken by the Galra. “Oh, that'd be great!”, Kihe had smirked devilishly and before Allura could disagree, Matt had seconded that with a bizarre laugh and a creepy sparkle in his eyes, “You'll crush them” Kihe had licked his lips, had connected his book and a little chip with one of the ship's computers and had winked at Matt, “Just a little” He hadn't bothered to explain what exactly he had been doing, but when the castle's sirens start blaring he laughs a howled “Finally!” The map Allura activates shows a specific planet, Pidge is on hold captive in one of the Galra's work camps, on Vryie.

“Wow”, Shiro praised Kihe with a clap on the back, “Omegas sure can be scary if it's about pack members, huh...” “You have no idea”, Kihe smiles, “Besides, you're alpha, and very 'wow' yourself” Shiro blinks in confusion, he didn't know his second gender, and neither does the rest of them. Honestly, Kihe had expected them to ask sooner, but oh well. “What am I?”, Hunk asks curiously. Kihe had to disappoint him, Hunk's a beta. “As I said, nearly every human is a beta... And betas are cool, Hunk!” “But Shiro's alpha”, he pouts, “It's not fair he's the only special one” “He is not the only special one”, Kihe tries to console Hunk, but it doesn't work. “Who's special too?” “Uh... everyone is special?”, but he caves under Hunk's stern gaze, “Lance is an alpha too...”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Updates once every two weeks probably...


End file.
